Ownership and Estate Planning: Rapid Fire

What this video covers

• Why account beneficiary designations override the will, and why ERISA-governed employer plans do not automatically revoke an ex-spouse beneficiary after divorce
• The exact split between Pay on Death (POD) for bank accounts and Transfer on Death (TOD) for brokerage accounts, and why the beneficiary has zero rights while the owner lives
• How joint tenants with right of survivorship (JTWROS) bypasses probate with equal undivided shares, why it is not limited to married couples, and how tenancy by the entirety differs
• How tenants in common (TIC) allows unequal shares and forces the deceased owner's interest through probate, since there is no survivorship feature
• Why revocable trusts avoid probate but stay in the taxable estate, while irrevocable trusts generally remove assets (unless the grantor retained prohibited powers)
• The mirror-image structure of charitable remainder trusts (CRTs, family income first then charity) versus charitable lead trusts (CLTs, charity income first then family remainder)
• How a QDRO overrides ERISA anti-assignment rules, exempts the alternate payee from the 10% early withdrawal penalty, and shifts tax liability depending on whether the payee is a spouse/former spouse or a child/dependent
• Why donor-advised funds grant an immediate income tax deduction, have no minimum annual payout requirement, and deliver a double tax benefit for eligible long-term appreciated securities