[sixty8]

We have a aunt who recently passed away, she had a trust that will be divided amongst 11 people. This trust is made up of stocks, the question is does the trust pay the taxes or does each individual pay taxes when they receive their share? Also should it just be divided as shares in stock or should it be liquidated, and dispersed in checks?

[JudyKayTee]

If you are asking about estate taxes, they are paid by the estate. This is not income - it's an inheritance so I don't believe it's taxable when received. Profits/dividends, of course, are taxable.

It can be distributed in either fashion - it might be easier to liquidate and divide the cash than it is to divide and apply for 11 different stock accounts.

Of course, with the market the way it is it might be to everyone's advantage to simply hold on for a little while - transfer the stocks instead of liquidating.

[ebaines]

I suggest that if there are significant holdings of stock, divide up and distribute the shares equally to all heirs. This avoids incurring expenses in the estate, and basically gives each heir the option to keep or sell the stock as they see fit. If you have odd amounts of stock that can't be divided equally, the fairest thing is to sell those shares and distribute the cash. Whatever you do, do not fall in the trap of distributing shares of one company to a few heirs and another company to others, as the inevitable change in market values between the shares will cause second guessing and grief down the road.