I have a small Estate. Before you start worrying about saving estate taxes, you and your CFP professional need to determine how much money you'll need to live on during retirement. People need a comfortable financial cushion in light of increasing longevity, higher medical costs, and long term inflation. Removing the value of insurance from your estate. Donating assets to charity.
Insurance can play an important role in estate planning.
Auto, home, and liability insurance protect against losses of property in your estate. Life insurance can provide surviving family members with cash for living expenses and for expenses associated with the death. Estates whose principal asset is a small business often need life insurance for co-owners to buy out the deceased's estate or for the deceased to provide an equitable share to heirs who won't be involved in running the business. Life insurance can cause unwanted estate tax consequences if it is not carefully structured. Estates change over time.