This means you can give the money to children to help them buy a house. Give the money in December, and you can give the same amount in January, tax-free. Just be sure that you and your spouse write separate checks. If your estate exceeds the amount you can give away estate-tax free only by a small amount and you believe you may need the money, you might want to hold off on gifts until you see how estate tax changes develop. Get grandparents to pay for your child's college education.
Grandparents can fund a grandchild's schooling, tax-free.
Give away securities. If you want to give away sums that go beyond cash, you can do so in the form of stocks or bonds. If you sell it, you'll incur a capital gains tax. There are trade-offs here. Your child will have to pay the capital gains tax when he or she sells the securities based on your cost basis.