Strategies to Transfer Property

Free CFP Exam lesson in Estate Planning. 17 min read, ~2,508 words.

Lifetime gifts remove the asset and all future appreciation from the taxable estate. Gifted property carries the donor's basis (carryover), inherited property gets a step-up. Annual exclusion is $19,000 per donee (2026); gift-splitting doubles it to $38,000, and direct-pay tuition and medical are unlimited on top of that. A qualified...