Mrs. Johnson had an estate plan in place. She planned a substantial portion of her estate for her ministry interests. The remainder was to be divided equally among her three children.

As a Christian steward living a giving lifestyle, do you need help reviewing or creating an asset transfer plan? We would love to help!

Four common methods of asset transfer at death are: titling, a Will, the Revocable Living Trust, and beneficiary designation.

Consider this scenario: Bill is in his mid-seventies, and has a home valued at $350,000. He plans to leave the home to ministry at his death but could benefit from additional income now.

When you plan your estate, should you consult your children? Should tradition be your guide? Will family members share your stewardship perspective? Will they want the responsibility of managing property? So many questions to consider. As Christian stewards, it is important that we make every effort to plan wisely with all that God has provided.

Would it not be nice to know? If we knew today and tomorrow’s financial needs, we could easily make decisions regarding the distribution of our estate. Since we do not know, we must consider at least three options:

When your cash flow won’t allow you to give as you desire, consider giving a gift of appreciated property. You can reduce taxes and make a substantial gift to charity by directly donating appreciated property to ministry. But what if the property providing the greatest tax benefit for you has a value that exceeds your desired gift?