Recent reports from a New York Family Lawyer indicate that farming families can breathe slightly easier now that President Obama has signed a federal tax bill stating that farmers can pass on their estates of up to 5 million dollars per person to an heir, and to also be able to do so tax free, at least for another two years.
There has been a lot of speculation and worry in the farming industry where family farms are concerned, reports the New York Family Lawyer. Being forced to pay a 35% inheritance tax could mean that the children that you leave your farm to would have to sell part of it off just to pay for the right to keep it, and when it comes to farming, selling off the land itself is the worst thing that you can do, because once the land is gone, so is your ability to grow and plant. It is the irony of farming.
Based on reports from the NY Family Lawyer, farmers are in a better spot than they could be on this, but even so, proper planning and accounting should be put into practice well before the time to pass the family business on comes near. It is imperative to get financial assets in order with the help of a good accountant.
As family farms face more and more pressures from the government and from agencies that have monopolized the power structures of how our food is produced, farmers hold their ground and stay in it for as long as they can, still committed to the life that is both hard work and yet so deeply rewarding when done in service of the people rather than at the whim of elite agencies and rule makers.
Call a verified New York Family Attorney for information regarding your family farm and what you can do best manage and keep it. A good New York Family Attorney understands that the life of a farming family is far more challenging than people understand. They will have the tools to help you manage it.
The firm of Stephen Bilkis & Associates with convenient locations thorughout the Metropolitan Area, including servicing Chelsea, N.Y., can be of invaluable assistance to you if you find yourself a party to a case. Facing the Court without professional representation could lead to disastrous results.