IRC 199A – Safe Harbor for Owners of Rental Properties

Take-Away: Late last week the IRS published Revenue Procedure 2019-38  in anattempt to provide some clarity when the owner of rental real estate can claim the IRC 199A 20% qualified income tax deduction. While some clarity is provided, there is still doubt about whether the owner of real estate leased on a ‘triple net’ lease […]

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Michigan’s Real Property Tax ‘Uncapping Rules Strike Again!

Take-Away: Anyone who has had even a remote connection with Michigan’s real property tax transfer rules will readily conclude that those rules are frequently counter-intuitive  and which often lead to ‘gotcha’ results. Yet another reported decision of the Michigan Court of Appeals confirmed that many of the ‘uncapping’ taxable value rules are nonsensical  lay-in-wait traps […]

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Uniform Fiduciary Principal and Income Act- Impact on IRAs Paid to Non-marital Trusts

Take-Away: The Uniform Fiduciary Principal and Income Act, not yet adopted in Michigan, changes the trustee’s treatment of distributions from IRAs and other qualified plans to a trust. It is important to remember that the terms of a trust instrument control the treatment and allocation of a retirement plan distribution to an irrevocable trust. In […]

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The SECURE Act’s Impact on “See-Through” Trusts

Take-Away: If the SECURE Act becomes the law, required minimum distributions (RMDs) from inherited IRAs and qualified plan accounts will be dramatically curtailed, going from distributions over the beneficiary’s life expectancy to only ten years. While the proposed law would exempt disabled beneficiaries from the mandatory 10-year payout from the retirement account, those disabled beneficiaries […]

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Confusing IRA Rules with Qualified Plan Rules

Take-Away: Individuals often confuse the distribution rules that are associated with IRAs with distributions from qualified plan accounts. Part of that confusion stems from the Department of Treasury’s vague definitions that can often lead to unexpected ‘gotcha’ income taxes and penalties. Background: A special rule with regard to IRAs is the ability to take a […]

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