David Auer, Founder and CEO of Auer Tax, Tells a Tale of Fast Cars, Accelerating Prices and Estate Taxes
Founder and CEO of Auer Tax Group, author and Premier Tax Expert, David Auer, illustrates the complicated world of estate taxes with a story that begins with a bright-red Ferrari and ends with 20 Ferrari’s valued by heirs at over $75 million while their value continues to accelerate to over $200 million.
Tulsa, OK – April 7, 2016 – David Auer, recognized Premier Tax Expert and Founder/CEO of Auer Tax Group posted a new article on the company website entitled “He Who Dies With The Most Toys Leaves the Largest Estate Tax Bills!”
According to Auer, “Estate taxes are a whole different animal than income taxes.” He continues, “The rules themselves aren’t especially complicated. The tax doesn’t kick in until your taxable estate tops $5.45 million ($10.9 million for married couples). And the rate itself is a flat 40%.”
“The real issue,” says Auer, “is assigning values to assets. How much exactly is everything worth?” He asks, “For instance, how much do you suppose a classic bright-red Ferrari is worth?” Of course price depends on the model. In this instance, Auer states, “Well, if it’s the 1957 335 S Spider Scaglietti that the French Bardinon family auctioned in February, the answer is €32 million, or around $35.8 million. But if there isn’t a convenient auction to establish how much someone will pay for something, and you need to set a price, how exactly do you go about establishing a number?”
According to Auer, “If an estate consists of publicly traded securities, that’s easy to determine. Throw in some real estate or a closely held business, and it gets a little tougher. And if there are collectibles or other hard-to-value assets, like Bardinon’s Ferraris, that’s when things get really sticky. Bring on the appraisers!”
“Naturally,” Auer states, “most families want to lowball the value of their assets. And it’s not necessarily hard to find an appraiser to go along.” He continues adding, “But keep in mind that the IRS has resources to fight back. When it comes to art, for example, the Service keeps an in-house staff of appraisers and experts. When that’s not enough firepower, they also maintain an Art Advisory Panel, made up of two-dozen scholars, curators, and dealers with expertise in a variety of areas.”
The entire article can be read at http://www.premiertaxexpert.com/he-who-dies-with-the-most-toys-leaves-the-largest-estate-tax-bills/
About David Auer
With over 30 years of experience, David Auer is the Founder and CEO of Auer Tax Group, a national tax consulting firm, Blue Ocean Strategies, a business strategic planning group, and The Advanced Planning Group, a collaboration of multidisciplinary advisors focused on tax, estate, asset protection, and business succession strategies for successful business owners, professionals, and high net worth families. He is also a founding member of Financial Gravity Law, a division of Financial Gravity®.
David is a frequent speaker, is recognized as one of America’s Premier Experts®, is on the adjunct faculty of Asset Protection Corporation founded by internationally acclaimed asset protection attorney Robert Lambert, LLM in Taxation, Esq., and is the author or co-author of several books, including 57 Ways to Grow Your Business – Bright Ideas for Serious Entrepreneurs; “You Can Deduct THAT?”; Ignite Your Life with Brian Tracy; and Performance 360 Special Edition with Richard Branson.