Category: Estate Tax Planning

Historically speaking, the federal estate tax is an excise tax levied on the transfer of a person’s assets after death. In actuality, it is neither a death tax nor an inheritance tax, but more accurately a transfer tax. There are three distinct aspects to federal estate taxes that comprise what is called the Unified Transfer Tax: Estate Taxes, Gift Taxes, and Generation- Skipping Transfer Taxes. Legal planning to avoid or minimize federal estate taxes is both a prudent and an important aspect of comprehensive estate planning.

Avoid Washington Estate Tax for 2022

By: Michael Gunning

Dec 7, 2022

If you leave behind more than $2.193 million when you die, your estate might owe Washington estate tax. If you’re a resident of Washington and your estate is valued at more...

Notes on Washington State Estate Taxes in 2022

By: Michael Gunning

Jul 6, 2022

Remind me, does Washington have an inheritance or estate tax? Washington does not have an inheritance tax, but there is a Washington State Estate Tax. Estate tax rates in Washington state...

Reduce Your Washington State Estate Taxes for 2020

By: Michael Gunning

Feb 14, 2021

An estate tax is a tax on your assets when you pass away. The IRS has determined that for 2020, federal estate tax generally only applies to accrued assets beyond...

Ready to Retire? Consider These 3 Retirement Tips

By: Michael Gunning

May 25, 2020

To protect yourself from some of life’s unexpected surprises, we’ve detailed several retirement tips you can use ahead of your decision to stop working. Starting at 10 years prior to...

Washington State Estate Tax Guide for 2021 – Moulton Law

By: Matt Luedke

Feb 5, 2019

So, do we have a Washington State Estate Tax or Inheritance Taxes? Washington definitely does have an Estate Tax, however it does not collect an Inheritance Tax. Amidst the general...

Angelina Patrícia

00:39 05 Jan 23

Matt went above and beyond to ensure that my parents' estate was properly taken care of. He took the time to explain... everything in detail and made sure that all of our questions were answered. I highly recommend Moulton for anyone in need charged with administering an estate.read more

Mark Ballard

17:05 10 Nov 22

Matthew was a great help getting a Medicaid application processed for my wife. Very professional, not sure if I could... have done it without him and his team. I have and will recommend him to anyone in similar circumstances to mine. Thanks for all your help.read more

Cherry Wiest

21:01 16 Aug 22

Moulton Law office has helped us with legal matters for many years. We’ve let things slide and have come back to the... same helpful, knowledgeable and pleasant people who know their job and do it well. A cutting edge firm in my opinion!read more

Pam Black

00:20 06 Aug 22

Working with Jenny Hubbard at the Kennewick office of Moulton Law Offices was perfect for what I needed help with. She... explained all the questions I had about writing a trust that would make my wishes easy to understand for my sons when the time comes. They also felt comfortable asking her questions. I especially like that the office is in Kennewick so I don’t have to travel far when I have questions. Jenny and her lawyer are here to help you with your questions.read more

Stephen A

22:30 19 Jul 22

My family has worked with Mr. Gunning at Moulton Law for over 10 years. I am retired and have worked with many... attorneys in my business career. Mr. Gunning is by far, the best attorney I have ever been associated with:1. He clearly explains complex legal issues2. He is an excellent listener and offers focused solutions3. He has always treated my 97 year old Mother with kindness and respect.4. The resulting Trusts/Wills have been very detailed and comprehensive.In my opinion, you will be very satisfied working with Mr. GunningAlso the support team is great to work with. Very Upbeat. Our favorite is Holly who has been there for a long time. She is very sharp, confidential, and quick to get to the bottom line in getting things done. Moulton Law is fortunate to have Holly on the Team!read more

Deb Wilcox

16:35 03 Jul 22

My husband and I met with Diana Davis, a Paralegal from Moulton Law Offices. She has been there for awhile and we have... met with her before. She is very professional but personable and totally knows the details that she is there to explain to us. Our Estate Plan needed updates, and Moulton Law Offices efficiently and thoroughly advised us of this, undertook the appropriate revisions, contacted us to discuss and schedule a followup meeting, and then Diana came with all the updates. She went through all the relevant changes and sections, replaced all the previous ones in our copy, obtained our signatures where needed, and all the while answered any questions we had. It was a very pleasant exchange and only took us about 1/2-hour. We are very glad we made the decision 8 years ago to contact Moulton Law Offices to help us prepare an appropriate (to our circumstances) Estate Plan. Diana is a real asset and someone good to know when we don’t need to speak directly with the lawyers (all of whom we also like and appreciate. Highly recommend them all.read more

Jay Sargent

22:56 27 Jun 22

Jenny was great. She helped us with a trust. Very knowledgeable and patient with us. Highly recommended.

Susan Paysse

01:00 26 May 22

We had a very good experience working with Moulton Law for our Trust. It's complicated work, and it was great to have a... local office to visit for our appointments. Jenny went over all of the documents thoroughly and efficiently. She answered our questions, made changes as needed, and made sure we understood and were comfortable with the documents we were signing. She is a great resource!read more

Clarissa Wolfe

00:12 26 May 22

Thank you Moulton Law Office in Kennewick! We appreciate the Kennewick office and Jenny's review of the documents. We... hope you open an office in Yakima (at least a few days a month). A big shout out to Jenny and her sense of humor... we loved spending time with you!read more

Leroy Wade

03:07 14 May 22

We signed and received our paperwork from Jenny Hubbard, the paralegal at the Kennewick office. We were impressed by... Jenny's knowledge of exactly what needed to be done and how. She did a remarkable job of explaining everything, and also giving us written instructions so we could later complete what we needed to do. She was also able to correct minor errors and reprint pages immediately to make the documents perfect. Meeting with her in Kennewick was vastly better than having to drive all the way to Spokane to do this work.read more

amalia oser

04:07 30 Apr 22

Thank you Jenny, We really enjoyed our time with you. However trying to move around the cramped table with the three of... us with all those documents was not easy., and at time uncomfortable. But with your great attitude it made the situation bearable.read more

Linda Ek

00:22 23 Apr 22

Jenny was very knowledgeable and down-to-earth with all the legal jargon need to be explained at our meeting. Loved... her great sense of humor, friendliness, but still professional. Can tell she enjoys her job. SHE NEEDS A RAISE!!!!! Looking forward to working with her and the company.read more

Jack Kaplan

18:31 15 Apr 22

Moulton Law firm has been a great source of information and peace of mind for me over the past few years. I discovered... them through friends and my wife and I decided to use them to get our affairs in order. A few years later my wife passed, and the work they had done for us made dealing with everything so much easier. I highly recommend them.read more

Roger McVicker

15:59 14 Apr 22

This firm is without a doubt the best and most hardworking we have ever delt with in our 80+ years. My wife and I just... spent two hours with them in their Kennewick office reviewing our restated and updated trust which they originally produced for us in 1999. It is completely updated to make provision for changed laws and for changed we required. All this is provided annually for very modest expense if you take advantage of their Customer Care Program which allows for annual review or less often if you desire. The excellent attorney we use is Michael Gunning and his superb legal paralegal Jennifer Hubbard. They also generated two separate trusts for our children primarily to avoid taxes for them. We couldn’t be happier with their performance and services!read more

Steve Engstrom

16:03 05 Apr 22

Always been five star service ! ! Appreciate the personal touch and prompt response times.Recommend your firm to all... my friends and acquaintances.Steve Engstromread more

John Sheppard

14:46 05 Apr 22

Very professional and pleasant.

Scott Warner

00:00 27 Apr 21

Great service and keep me up to date on my account

Tracy Rowe

01:39 25 Mar 21

This review is a retraction to the 2 star review I posted 3 days ago. I did some research and discovered that my... in-laws had used their middle initials when they signed documents to purchase their house in 1977. When it was time to sign the forms to deed the house to the Trust in 1991, they signed the papers using their full middle name. Melissa was telling the truth about receiving the Real Property Deed to Trust. Mathew from Moulton Law stepped in to get to the bottom of the situation. He contacted my realtor and her title company to see what they needed for a clear title. I'm happy to say that with a phone call from Mathew to the County Assessors office, we are ready to put our house on the market with a clear title. Thank you Mathew for responding quickly to our needs. You deserve 5 plus stars.read more

Terry Rowe

22:53 21 Mar 21

My father-in-law paid Moulton Law in Spokane to prepare a Trust. In January my Father-in-law passed away. We had our... 1 hour meeting over the phone, not in person, on February 2nd with someone from the office to discuss the Trust. We were told that the house, my father-in-law owned, had been deeded to the Trust and that a realtor may need a piece of paper from them (don't recall what she called it) but we were clear when it came time to sell. Fast forward a month and a half, now it is time to put the house up for sale. Each week for the last 7 weeks we have commuted 6 hours round trip from out of state, cleaning and emptying out a 2900+ square foot house with double garage and shed. We have spent hours talking to and finally hiring a realtor just to find out we were LIED to. Our realtor notified us that the house had NOT been deeded to the Trust. We worked hard to get the T's crossed and the I's dotted and now we have been told it is going to cost us $1500 and we can't even get an appointment with the office for 3 weeks. I have a couple of problems with Moulton Law Offices. The first one being... Why didn't they follow up with a 2 minute phone call and ask my 80 year old father-in-law where the deed to the house was? Granted it was his responsibility to follow through with the plans of the Trust, but I know he paid a pretty penny to this office for this Trust and the fact that they didn't check up with him is questionable ( no follow through). My second problem... We were not told on February 2nd that the transfer had not been completed, we were told the deed was there. If we had known on February 2nd, we could have started our probate proceedings, and then maybe we would have come out with clear title around the same time we finished getting the house prepared to sell. Now our grief is going to be extended as we get to go through all of my father-in-laws personal information with a new law office.read more

Patrick Maher

20:17 05 Jan 21

Matt Luedke has helped our family with achieving a VA benefit and Medicaid benefit for our mother who is in assisted... living. Matt helped us navigate some or the tricky obstacles that were encountered while assuring the Federal Guidelines were met. The peace of mind and direction he provides makes his services well worth the time and money!!read more

00:51 23 Dec 20

Large easy access parking. Very professional staff.

Roland Craft

02:14 10 Dec 20

Matthew Luedke has been very helpful to our family in figuring out a complicated Trust. He is professional, kind,... patient, and has a good sense of humor. We're lucky to have him on our side!read more

Allyson Andrade

23:05 15 Jul 20

We had wonderful success having Matthew prepare our estate planning documents! We were offered a free consultation via... phone where we discussed the documents we would need, after which we agreed to move forward with the process. Matthew sent us a draft via email and we responded with all changes we thought were necessary, then a few days later we met at the Moulton office to sign all documents and they were explained to us in depth. The entire process was quick, easy, and offered at a very fair price. We will definitely be recommending Moulton Law Offices to our friends.read more

Lori Hasenyager

15:00 03 Apr 20

Mathew helped our family set up a Living Trust. He made a complicated process into a very understandable process for us... . He was very knowledgeable, compassionate and timely. He also provides us with ongoing help as needed with any questions we have had. I would highly recommend him.read more

tom shinskie

03:50 12 Feb 20

These folks were very helpful in a couple of matters

Stacia and Scott Phillips

19:13 01 Jan 20

Losing a loved one is so hard and having to go through the legal and financial issues makes it worse. We were so... grateful to have the expertise of the Moulton Law Offices, not only having the trust set up, but during the process. They provided a checklist that covered everything, especially the items you don't think about as your thoughts are consumed. They have been so helpful with everything and make themselves available for my mother and myself to answer any questions that arise.read more

Jerry Traynham

22:20 10 Dec 19

Dealt with Matt Luedke re. medicaid. It was a complicated process as I went to 2 other law offices and settled with... Moulton and Matt. He made it so easy and uncomplicated that I was able to navigate it with his help. I would highly recommend this office and Matt Luedke for any medicare medicaid issues.read more

Denise Lucero

01:39 30 Oct 19

One of the greatest gifts my parents gave me was to set up a Living Trust, Will, and advanced directives with Moulton... Law Group. During the course of my nine years working with Moulton (from the time of my mother’s passing to the death of my dad) Mr. Matthew Luedke, Attorney At Law was always there to answer my questions, make sure I met deadlines, and help me make informed decisions. His staff was also there for me with my last minute clerical requests. I definitely recommend Mr. Luedke. He made going through a difficult situation easier.Denise Luceroread more

Jeanette Lawson

20:04 15 Jul 19

We have received exceptional help from Olivia on our updated Trust. She is very knowledgeable, excellent overall... experience. Thank you! - Jeanette Lawson / Tom Youngread more

Mike Bennett

15:56 03 Jul 19

Great law office. Super helpful. Set up a living trust for my partner and myself. I feel very secure about my personal... holdings being taken care of.read more

A Google User

17:09 17 Jun 19

This firm truly cares about their clients and it shows in the quality of their work. They were very thorough and made... sure that my trust was tailored to my specific needs (I have special needs children). I would highly recommend them to anyone in need of estate planning or special needs planning.read more

Maxine Pickel

I was not looking forward to the task of setting up our family trust. Working with the staff at Moulton Law definitely... changed that into a pleasant & educational experience. My husband & I feel confident in their professional abilities and that they really do care about their clients.read more

Monica MacNaughton

23:07 27 Mar 19

Over the past several years, our family has had a great experience working with Matthew Luedke at Moulton Law Offices.... He has assisted us with a family trust and the many details involved with this trust. Matthew is always patient answering our many questions. We would highly recommend his legal services.read more

Jolene Schmidt

20:37 20 Feb 19

I'm very happy with the services provided by Moulton Law. Our family needed help resolving some issues with our Living... Trust and these guys really saved the day. We highly recommend this company and will be back if we have other concerns later on. Thank you for all your help!read more

Dick Johnson

18:09 17 Feb 19

Fantastic experience at Moulton Law Offices! I had a great time working with both Mr. Luedke and Mr. Gunning - both... were very knowledgeable and took their time to explain our Living Trust in detail. Highly recommend to anyone who is considering setting up their own trust!read more