These days, ownership is a crucial issue. With families reconfiguring, extending, or just disintegrating, holding on to one's belongings has become a concern, if not a major bone of contention, for just about everyone. And with more and more small businesses starting up, entrepreneurs are wondering about partnerships and incorporation. Now, with Own It and Keep It, you will be able to protect all that is near and dear - from the tax man, the grim reaper, and the vagaries of life.
The surprisingly varied forms of ownership offer a wide range of possibilities from which owners can choose. The authors pay special attention to certain assets and situations requiring particular consideration, such as auto and real estate purchases, bank accounts, divorce, alimony and child support, single parenthood, second marriage, and ownership by minors. Own It and Keep It also tells you exactly what you should know about buying and owning condos and co-ops, shifting income to lower-bracket taxpayers, creating college funds for children, avoiding probate and death taxes, planning for the elderly and their assets, and owning a business.
Useful tables include the elements of a trust agreement, income and gift tax liability for jointly held property, and the legal consequences of various forms of ownership.