Texas Estate Tax & Basis Planning Worksheet

What's Inside

A structured worksheet for evaluating federal estate-tax exposure, step-up-in-basis opportunities, community-property characterization, and trust income-tax design. Authored by an attorney with a Master of Laws in Taxation from NYU.

1. Step 1. Total your gross estate — real estate, investments, retirement accounts, life insurance face value, business interests

2. Step 2. Identify assets with significant unrealized capital gain (appreciated stock, real estate, crypto) and flag them as step-up candidates

3. Step 3. Confirm community-property characterization of marital assets in Texas — both halves step up at first death

4. Step 4. Compare your estate against the 2026 federal basic exclusion ($15 million per individual) and model future growth under the indexed threshold

5. Step 5. Evaluate whether lifetime gifting is appropriate after weighing retained control, cash flow, creditor exposure, and the loss of a potential step-up in basis

6. Step 6. Evaluate SLAT (Spousal Lifetime Access Trust) for married couples wanting to use both spouses' exemptions

7. Step 7. Identify assets that should be gifted now (low-basis appreciating assets held for long horizon) vs. held for step-up

8. Step 8. Review existing trusts for compressed-bracket income-tax exposure (the 37% bracket begins above $16,000 of taxable income for estates and trusts in 2026)

9. Step 9. Evaluate intentionally-defective grantor trust (IDGT) structures for additional tax-free gifting via grantor-paid income tax

10. Step 10. Confirm beneficiary designations on IRAs and 401(k)s align with SECURE Act 10-year rule planning

11. Step 11. Document charitable giving plans — CRTs, CLTs, donor-advised funds — and integrate with estate plan

12. Step 12. Schedule a tax-integrated estate plan review with an attorney and CPA before making gifts, changing trust terms, or selling appreciated assets