They say the only things that are certain are death and taxes. But they can come at once in the form of the estate tax, often referred to as the death tax. However, most people won’t pay estate taxes. That’s mainly because of the large lifetime gift and estate tax exemption of $13.99 million for 2025. That means estate taxes are levied on the value of estates exceeding that amount. But that can change dramatically.
The large threshold was set by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), made official by President Donald Trump in 2017. But without a move from Congress, the lifetime gift and estate tax exemption is set to go back to pre-2017 levels of about $7 million. This could push many affluent families into the estate tax zone—especially those with expensive homes that have increased in value and are in high-income areas.
