Qualified personal residence trusts have dropped out of favor because of high estate tax exemptions and low-interest rates.
Barron’s recently published an article on some of the benefits and drawbacks of QPRTs in “Holding Vacation Homes in Trust.”
Because of relatively high estate tax exemptions and low-interest rates, qualified personal residence trusts are not as useful as they used to be.
However, people who expect to have estates with values over the estate tax exemption or who have homes that could rapidly rise in value can still benefit from a QPRT as long as everyone in the family is on the same page about what should happen to the home.
A QPRT is an irrevocable term-limited trust that can help to stretch your gift tax exemption. When a residence is put into the trust the value of the residence is locked in for tax purposes.
The owner can still live in the home and is responsible for it. The residence can even be sold as long as another residence is then put in the trust.
When the term of the trust ends the trust beneficiaries become the new owners of the residence. However, if the current owner passes away before the term of the trust is over, the purpose of the trust is defeated and the home becomes part of the estate.
