“Aretha Franklin's death is going to cause some headaches for her heirs.”
The Queen of Soul did not have an estate plan, a will or a trust when she died from pancreatic cancer recently, according to news reports. That’s especially surprising, said Investment News in the article “Aretha Franklin estate echoes planning problems of Prince,” since her estate has already been valued at as much as $80 million.
Franklin was not married, so the estate will pass to her four children. It’s similar to the situation that occurred when Prince died unmarried and without a will in 2016.
Had she been married her estate would have passed tax-free to a spouse and there would have been planning opportunities available at that time.
Franklin’s four kids will now receive equal shares of her estate. However, they will have to pay a considerable amount in taxes. She was a resident of Michigan, which does not have an estate tax, so there won’t be a state estate tax. However, the federal government takes 40% of portions of the estate valued over $11.18 million. In other words, a $27.5 million tax bill.
Without the benefit of a trust being established by a will, those assets will be taxed again by the federal government at the time that the four heirs pass, when the money moves to her grandchildren.
Celebrity estates, like that of Franklin, must undergo a complex valuation process to correctly assign an approximate future value of income. Like Prince, there are image rights and music royalties, and the buzz surrounding her death is likely to inflate its value and the tax that will be levied.
While Michigan does not have an estate tax, the state does have a “postmortem right of publicity,” meaning that her heirs have the right to legally protect her image for commercial use. Her postmortem rights of publicity are expected to be extremely high, because of her iconic stature as a musician, songwriter and cultural touchstone.
Estates of celebrities and creative artists are required to be valued and the appraisal must be reconciled with a parallel appraisal conducted by the IRS. Remember Michael Jackson’s situation? The estate initially valued his name and image at $2,015, while the IRS valued it at more than $434 million.
One of Franklin’s children reportedly has special needs. This could put him in a precarious position. If he inherits a large sum of money, he will no longer be eligible for any government programs. Given the size of his inheritance, that will not be a problem. For those with less wealth, however, that is why estate planners encourage the use of special needs trusts. This not only protects the child’s eligibility but protects them from misusing the money or being scammed by unscrupulous individuals.
Don’t follow the Queen of Soul’s footprints, when it comes to estate planning. Have a will and other important documents prepared by an estate planning attorney.
Reference: Investment News (Aug. 22, 2018) “Aretha Franklin estate echoes planning problems of Prince”
“艾瑞莎弗蘭克林的去世會給她的繼承人帶來一些麻煩”
據新聞報導,靈魂女王 (The Queen of Soul)最近因胰腺癌死亡,沒有遺產計劃,遺囑或信託。這尤其令人驚訝,因為投資新聞在文章中說“Aretha Franklin estate echoes planning problems of Prince” (艾瑞莎弗蘭克林(Aretha Frankin)的房地產與羅傑斯尼爾森 (王子) 一樣有規劃問題) 因為她的遺產價值已高達8000萬美元。
弗蘭克林沒有結婚,所以遺產將傳給她的四個孩子。這與2016年王子在未婚並沒有遺囑的情況下發生的情況類似。
如果她已經結婚,她的遺產就會免稅給配偶,如果是那樣的話,那便可做些規劃。
弗蘭克林的四個孩子現在將獲得平等的遺產份額。但是,他們將不得不支付相當多的稅款。她是密芝根州的居民,該州沒有遺產稅,因此不會繳交州的遺產稅。然而,聯邦政府會取價值超過1118萬美元的財產微收40%的遺產稅。換句話說,2750萬美元的稅單。
如果沒有建立信託,當四個繼承人過世後,資金轉移給孫子時,聯邦政府會再次微收遺產稅。
像弗蘭克林那樣的名人,遺產必須經過複雜的估值過程才能確定分配未來的收入價值。像王子一樣,有圖像版權和音樂版稅,坊問的評論可能會誇大其價值和徵收的稅收。
雖然密芝根沒有遺產稅,但該州確實有“死後推廣權”,這意味著她的繼承人有權合法保護她的形像用於商業。由於她作為音樂家,詞曲作者和文化標誌,她的死後宣傳權預計將極高。
需要對名人和創意藝術家的遺產進行評估價值,評估必須與美國國稅局進行的評估相協調。還記得米高積遜的處境嗎?遺產執行人最初估價他的名字和形象為2,015美元,而美國國稅局估價超過4.34億美元。
據報導,弗蘭克林的一個孩子有特殊需要 (殘障) 。這可能使他陷入危險的位置。如果他繼承了大筆遺產,他將不再有資格領取任何政府福利。鑑於他的繼承規模,這不會是一個問題。但是,對於那些財富較少的人來說,這就是為什麼資產規劃師鼓勵使用特殊需求信託。這不僅可以保護孩子領取福利的資格,還可以保護他們免受濫用金錢或被人欺騙。
在涉及資產規劃時,不要追隨靈魂女王的腳印。由資產規劃律師準備遺囑和其他重要文件。
參考: Investment News (Aug. 22, 2018) “Aretha Franklin estate echoes planning problems of Prince”