Bit of a Creepy Legal Question...

[Smarti5051]

Keep in mind the annual $16K/person gift tax exclusion is just one tool for avoiding gift tax consequences. If the amount of the gift is above $16K, you would be able to apply the excess to the Lifetime Gift Exemption, which is a little over $12 million. Of course, once you get over $16K, there are tax documents that will need to be prepared/filed, but no tax due by you or the gift recipient(s).

One important note to consider: if you gift a card collection during your lifetime, the recipient will have the same tax basis in the collection that you had. So, for instance, if your collection consisted of a T206 Honus Wagners that you bought for $1000 40 years ago, the basis in that card after gifting would still be $1000. If it were later sold for $2,000,000, the recipient would owe capital gains taxes on almost the entire $2 million. By contrast, if you included the same card in your will, the recipient would receive the card at a stepped-up basis to the current market value at the time of death. So, the same recipient selling the same card would owe virtually no taxes in the event of a sale. So, there are pros and cons to lifetime gifts vs gifts upon death.