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Crafting Your Legacy: Exploring the Charitable Remainder Trust as a Stretch IRA Alternative

The Stretch IRA was once a popular estate planning tool. Not only could beneficiaries receive inherited IRA funds, but they’d also keep tax benefits. However, recent changes brought about by the SECURE Act have ended this strategy. As a result, those whose retirement plans included a Stretch IRA now need to find an alternative. If you were planning to use a Stretch IRA, Kiplinger makes the case that you should consider a Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) instead.

What Happened to the Stretch IRA?

A Stretch IRA allowed non-spouse beneficiaries to withdraw slowly from inherited retirement accounts. This minimized taxes, maximized growth and provided long-term security. However, the SECURE Act now requires beneficiaries to empty inherited IRAs within ten years. This increases exposure to taxes and eliminates the Stretch IRA as a long-term option for asset growth and inherited income.

If this change impacts you, there are alternatives available. One of the best options may be the Charitable Remainder Trust, which offers a combination of tax benefits and long-term income.

How can a Charitable Remainder Trust Help?

A Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) offers a new path to those who want to give long-term income to their beneficiaries. With a CRT, assets are transferred to the trust, providing beneficiaries with a steady income stream for a set period. Once this term ends or the beneficiary dies, any remaining assets are donated to the chosen charity. The benefits of a Charitable Remainder Trust include:

  • Reduced taxes: A CRT reduces the deceased’s taxable estate and provides tax deductions for the charitable gift.
  • Long-term income: Beneficiaries receive a steady payout. It lasts for a set number of years or their lifetime.
  • A philanthropic legacy: When your CRT is done supporting heirs, it will leave you with a final philanthropic legacy.

Are there Caveats to CRTs?

While CRTs provide an alternative to the Stretch IRA, they have limitations. Administration can be complex, and not all asset types are suitable for inclusion in a CRT.  Beneficiaries might also receive less total income than other estate planning options. Before you open a CRT, you’ll need to consider whether it’s the right choice for your family.

Build an Estate Plan Tailored to Your Needs

All estate planning strategies have cases where they’re suitable and cases where they aren’t. Doing right by your family means understanding the options available, weighing them and choosing correctly. Estate planning is complex. However, that’s what we’re here for. Contact our estate planning team to determine if a Charitable Remainder Trust suits you. We’ll walk you through the pros and cons, provide alternatives and help you develop a customized estate plan.

Schedule a consultation today and take the first step toward a legacy that reflects your values and supports your loved ones.

Key Takeaways

  • The SECURE Act: With new limitations on the Stretch IRA, elderly Americans should consider alternatives.
  • Charitable Remainder Trusts: Secure tax benefits on long-term income to loved ones while benefiting charities.
  • Tax Advantages: CRTs allow donors to cut their taxable estate.

Reference: Kiplinger (April 2024) “Charitable Remainder Trust: The Stretch IRA Alternative | Kiplinger”

Can I Avoid Taxes when I Inherit?

Kiplinger’s recent article entitled “Minimizing Taxes When You Inherit Money” says that if you inherit an IRA from a parent, the taxes on mandatory withdrawals could mean you will have a smaller inheritance than you anticipated.

Prior to 2020, beneficiaries of inherited IRAs or other tax-deferred accounts, like 401(k)s, could transfer the money into an account known as an inherited (or “stretch”) IRA. From there, you could take withdrawals over your life expectancy, allowing you to minimize withdrawals taxed at ordinary income tax rates. This lets the funds in the account to grow.

However, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019 stopped this tax-saving strategy. Most adult children and other non-spouse heirs who inherit an IRA after January 1, 2020, now have two options: (i) take a lump sum; or (ii) transfer the money to an inherited IRA that must be depleted within 10 years after the death of the original owner. This 10-year rule doesn’t apply to surviving spouses, who can roll the money into their own IRA and allow the account to grow, tax-deferred, until they must take required minimum distributions (RMDs) at 72.  Spouses can also transfer the money into an inherited IRA and take distributions based on their life expectancy. The SECURE Act also created exceptions for non-spouse beneficiaries for those who are minors, disabled, chronically ill, or less than 10 years younger than the original IRA owner.

As a result, IRA beneficiaries who aren’t eligible for the exceptions could wind up with a big tax bill, especially if the 10-year withdrawal period is when they have a lot of other taxable income.

The 10-year rule also applies to inherited Roth IRAs. However, although you must still deplete the account in 10 years, the distributions are tax-free, provided the Roth was funded at least five years before the original owner died. If you don’t need the money, delay in taking the distributions until you’re required to empty the account. That will give you up to 10 years of tax-free growth.

Many heirs cash out their parents’ IRAs. However, if you take a lump sum from a traditional IRA, you’ll owe taxes on the whole amount, which might move you into a higher tax bracket.

Transferring the money to an inherited IRA lets you allocate the tax bill, although it’s for a shorter period than the law previously allowed. Since the new rules don’t require annual distributions, there’s a bit of flexibility.

Reference: Kiplinger (Oct. 29, 2021) “Minimizing Taxes When You Inherit Money”

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