The New York estate tax “cliff” is a quirk in state law that can cause an estate to lose its entire exemption and be taxed from the very first dollar. For deaths occurring on or after January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026, New York provides a basic exclusion amount of $7,350,000. An estate at or below that figure pays
To avoid probate in New York, you move your assets out of your sole name before death — primarily by funding a revocable living trust (EPTL Article 7), naming beneficiaries directly on accounts, and holding property jointly — so that title passes automatically instead of being routed through Surrogate’s Court. But avoiding probate is only one piece. A plan that
You should review your New York estate plan every three to five years, and immediately after any major life event — a marriage, divorce, birth, death, large change in assets, a move into or out of New York, or a shift in the tax law. A plan is not a one-time document you sign and file away; it is a
The short answer: in New York, a Health Care Proxy appoints an agent to make your medical decisions when you cannot, while a durable Power of Attorney appoints an agent to manage your financial and legal affairs. They are two separate documents, governed by two separate statutes, and one cannot do the job of the other. A Health Care Proxy
If you are a young family in New York, the most important thing your estate plan does is name who raises your children and who manages their money if you and your spouse are gone — and it does this through a coordinated set of four documents: a will, one or more trusts, a durable power of attorney, and a
Estate planning for a blended family in New York means building one coordinated set of documents — a will, one or more trusts, a durable power of attorney, and a health care proxy — that protects your current spouse without disinheriting the children from a prior relationship. That balance is the central challenge of the blended-family plan: New York’s default