Do both equally spouses have to have to be 65 to file for assets tax exemption?
Q. My wife and I have our residence jointly. She turns 65 in 2024, and I change 65 in 2025. When will we be capable to file for the around-65 exemption?
A. Only 1 of you demands to be over 65 to qualify for the over age 65 homestead exemption. As a result, you and your spouse will be equipped to file the demanded type in the county exactly where you dwell at the time your wife reaches age 65 in 2024.
As soon as the exemption is granted, if your wife dies right before you arrive at age 65, the exemption will remain in outcome. The rule is that as extended as you are 55 decades of age or older if your wife dies and you personal the home, you can go on the exemption.
Q. I want to incorporate two names to the checklist of beneficiaries in my will which was ready by an lawyer. Can I just publish them in and have the additions notarized, or do I have to go to an lawyer?
A. You want to go to an lawyer.
Any handwritten improvements you make will be overlooked when the will is probated. You have to have to employ the service of an attorney to prepare either a new will or an modification to your current will (regarded as a “codicil”).
Q. In a new column you advised using a Texas-centered believe in organization, but on line queries for “Texas primarily based Believe in Corporation” aren’t yielding lots of effects. Can you propose the very best sites to research or phrasing that may well be a lot more effective?
A. Most significant national banking companies have have faith in firms which can execute all the duties expected of an executor. You can also look for “trust organization Texas” with the name of the county the place you are living extra to the look for.
Q. My household is paid out for and could in all probability market for about $500,000. The servicing and assets taxes continue to boost just about every 12 months. I’m retired with an IRA and a certificate of deposit. Social Stability is my only earnings. Should really I promote my dwelling and commit in an annuity? Should really I acquire yet another home (scaled-down and less costly) or rent a property?
A. This query ought to be directed to a economic planner, not a attorney.
Consider to discover a planner who is a “Licensed Financial Planner” (or “CFP”) and who is not exclusively fascinated in advertising you an annuity. You want to locate an advisor who will notify you what is greatest for you, not what is finest for him or her.
A financial planner will be capable to provide projections which will permit you to determine what is the ideal class of motion.
The info in this column is intended to supply a standard understanding of the legislation, not authorized guidance. Ronald Lipman of the Houston law agency Lipman & Associates is board-accredited in estate setting up and probate law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. E mail inquiries to
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