Saturday, November 01, 2008

Recommended Reading

From the New York Times...some steps same-sex couples need to take for getting anything closely resembling marriage equality.

On property ownership, for instance:
Same-sex couples, married or not, need to take extra care when titling their property, especially their homes. Heterosexual married couples can transfer real estate and personal property to each other with no gift taxes and no estate taxes until the second spouse dies. Same-sex married couples and those with equivalent rights living in states that recognize them have this benefit only on the state level. But property passing to a same-sex spouse is still subject to federal estate taxes upon the first spouse’s death. In 2008, federal estate taxes apply for assets valued at more than $2 million. Adding a same-sex spouse to the title of your home may also have tax implications because it would be considered a gift.

No comments: