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Death & Taxes with Hans

The death and taxes guy. Life insurance, annuities, and the tax math most agents never learned.

Most agents learn the product and the commission schedule and stop there. I’m a licensed insurance producer who studies the tax side: what your beneficiaries will owe, what a big sale really costs, and how Social Security, Medicare premiums and required withdrawals stack on top. This page collects the guides, books and calculators I’ve built on both halves of the old saying.

Hans Goldstein, licensed insurance producer, licensed insurance producer who studies the tax side · CA license 4273294 · NPN 20602398
Updated

Death: what your family gets, and what they owe

Life insurance pays at death. The tax rules decide how much of everything else your family keeps. Get the beneficiary forms and the basis math right and the hand-off is clean.

Life insurance cost by ageWhat term and permanent coverage run at 40, 50, 60 and 70, and what moves the price. Annuity or life insurance: which first?Income for you versus money for them. How to decide the order. Indexed universal life by buyer typeWho IUL fits, who it doesn't, and what to check before you sign. Owner vs annuitant vs beneficiaryThree names on one contract. Get them wrong and the tax bill lands on the wrong person. The 5-year rule on an inherited annuityWhat a beneficiary can choose, and how each choice is taxed. Inherited annuity tax calculatorLump sum, five years or stretch: see the tax on each. Inherited IRA rulesThe 10-year rule and what heirs owe when the money comes out. Step-up in basis at deathWhy some owners hold property for their heirs, and when selling first still wins.thewaterfallstrategy.com Selling inherited propertyCapital gains on an inherited house or building, starting from the stepped-up basis.goldsteinco.net What happens to an installment note at deathPayments keep coming to your heirs. Here is how they are taxed.installmentsalecalculator.com The widow's penaltyOne spouse dies, the income barely drops, and the tax bracket jumps. Social Security survivor benefitsHow the surviving spouse keeps the bigger check, and why claiming age matters.
Death and taxes check

What will the tax bill be, for you and for your heirs?

Send your email and I'll send a plain-English read on the tax side of what you hold: what your beneficiaries would owe, what a big sale would cost you, and whether a cleaner setup exists. If you're already set up right, I'll say so.

Email only. Hans reads every one himself and replies within one business day. Hans Goldstein · NPN 20602398.

Rather talk it through? Or book 15 minutes on Hans’s calendar.

Taxes: the bill most people meet too late

Most of the tax damage happens in one year: the year you sell, the year RMDs start, the year a big gain pushes Medicare premiums up. These pages show the math before that year arrives.

Capital gains on a big sale

Capital gains tax calculator for real estateFederal, state, recapture and net investment income tax on your sale.installmentsalecalculator.com Taxes when you sell a businessAsset sale vs stock sale, allocation, and where the gain really lands.installmentsalecalculator.com Spread a capital gain over several yearsWhy one big year often costs more than the same gain taken in pieces.installmentsalecalculator.com

Structured installment sales: close the deal, spread the tax

What a structured installment sale isThe buyer pays in full at closing. You receive the money on a schedule you choose and report the gain as it arrives.installmentsalecalculator.com How the deal worksWho signs what, where the money goes, and what the buyer actually notices (almost nothing).goldsteinco.net Structured installment sale questions, answeredPlain answers on timing, payments, state tax and what to bring your CPA.goldsteinco.net Installment sale calculatorCash sale vs payments over time: tax by year, side by side.installmentsalecalculator.com

1031 boot and failed exchanges

1031 boot, explainedCash or debt relief you didn't roll over is taxable. Here is how to measure it.thewaterfallstrategy.com 1031 boot calculatorEnter the numbers from both closings and see the taxable boot.installmentsalecalculator.com When a 1031 exchange failsMissed the 45 or 180 days? What the tax looks like and what options remain.thewaterfallstrategy.com Pairing an installment sale with 1031 bootSpread the taxable part over time instead of paying it all at once.thewaterfallstrategy.com

Social Security and IRMAA traps

Is Social Security taxable?Up to 85% of your benefit can be taxed. The formula, in plain English. The Social Security tax torpedoWhy one extra dollar of income can be taxed at almost double your bracket. IRMAA brackets for 2026How a high-income year raises your Medicare premiums two years later. IRMAA bracket calculatorSee how close you are to the next surcharge tier. Capital gains and IRMAAHow one big sale can raise Medicare premiums, and how spreading the gain helps.installmentsalecalculator.com

Required minimum distributions and annuity tax

RMD calculatorWhat you must take out each year, and what it adds to your tax return. The RMD bucket trapHow to stop forced withdrawals from selling stocks at the bottom. Annuities and taxes, explainedTax deferral, withdrawals, 1099-Rs and what your heirs inherit. Non-qualified annuity taxGains come out first and are taxed as ordinary income. What to plan for.

Free books and calculators

Every book below is a free download, and every calculator is free to use. Written for owners in plain English, with the math laid out so your CPA can check it.

The Waterfall Strategy (free e-books, every edition)Stuck rental losses, a big sale and how payments over time can use them. One-page, plain-English and full editions.thewaterfallstrategy.com The Loss Bank (free guide)Capital loss carryforwards and tax-loss harvesting for sellers of real estate or a business.thewaterfallstrategy.com Save the Deal (free playbook for brokers)Spot the deal that is stuck on taxes and bring it back to life.thewaterfallstrategy.com More to Manage (free book and calculator for advisors)Cash sale vs structured installment sale: client wealth, assets under management and fees.installmentsalecalculator.com Installment sale calculatorFree Section 453 calculator: cash, seller financing or a structured sale, tax by year.installmentsalecalculator.com Capital loss carryover calculatorHow much of a stored loss you can use this year and how much carries forward.thewaterfallstrategy.com All annuity and retirement calculatorsMYGA growth, payout, RMD, IRMAA, Social Security bridge and more.

Videos: Death & Taxes with Hans

Short videos on the same topics: what heirs owe, how a big sale is taxed, and the traps in Social Security, Medicare and RMDs. One idea per video, a few minutes each.

Watch on YouTube: @hansgoldstein8204Subscribe for new episodes of Death & Taxes with Hans.youtube.com

Get your numbers checked

Fifteen minutes on the phone. Bring the policy, the annuity statement or the sale you are planning, and I’ll tell you where the tax lands and whether there is a cleaner way. If what you have is already right, I’ll say so.

Book 15 minutes with Hans Or call 213-414-2808, or start with the free installment sale calculator.

Hans Goldstein, CA Insurance License #4273294, NPN 20602398 · Goldstein & Co. LLC dba Goldstein Insurance Services, CA License #6016830 · 213-414-2808 · hans@hansgoldstein.com

This page is general education. Hans Goldstein is a licensed insurance producer who studies the tax side of insurance and retirement income; he is not a CPA, attorney or tax preparer, and nothing here is tax, legal or investment advice or an offer of any specific product. Examples are illustrations, not promises of any tax result or savings. Life insurance and annuity benefits depend on the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurer. Annuities have surrender charges and other limitations; read the contract and disclosure before you buy. Structured installment sales and 1031 exchanges have trade-offs and eligibility rules, and the right answer depends on your full tax picture. Review any plan with your CPA or attorney before you act. Some links go to Hans’s companion education sites (installmentsalecalculator.com, thewaterfallstrategy.com, goldsteinco.net).

📞 Call Hans · 213-414-2808
Hans Goldstein · Independent Licensed Insurance Producer · NPN 20602398 · 213-414-2808
Hans Goldstein, CA Insurance License #4273294 · Goldstein & Co. LLC dba Goldstein Insurance Services, CA License #6016830© 2026 Goldstein & Co. LLC · Reviews are independent and not endorsed by the carriers reviewed. Clients: leave a review
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