Venezuelan Migration and Money Transfer Options

Venezuela resides on the northern coast of South America, beside Columbia, Guyana, and above Brazil. It is privileged to be on the coast of both the Carribbean Sea, and Atlantic Ocean. Its population exceeds 30 million people, making it the 40th largest country in the world. However, a steady flow of citizens continue to consider if it is the best place for their future.

A large proportion of Venezuelan citizens receive money from their family members abroad on a weekly or monthly basis. Many of those who send money to Venezuela are in America. There are nearly 180,000 people with direct Venezuelan ancestry in the US.

Venezuela's expatriate community worldwide, especially in America is greatly respected. They are known for their high levels of education and business successes. Many Venezuelans come to America as young adults to attend university. It takes an intense dedication in high school, just to be accepted to an American university, as Venezuelan schools are not the most respected in South America.

As well as those that migrated to America for educational opportunities, growing numbers have come for political reasons. While the US certainly has her own political demons, the distaste for the current regime in Venezuela and their stringent policies is a polarizing source for many.

The options to send money to Venezuela vary, but of late, taking advantage of the ability to send money online has been attractive to the intellectual Venezuelan community.

In the past Venezuelans utilized traditional money transfer services. With these services, both sender and recipient had to report to a third-party location to complete the money transfer. Recipients have become more and more weary of these establishments as it makes the process lacking in privacy.

Due to the business acumen and success for Venezuelans in America, most of them hold and maintain US banks accounts for proper storage of their funds. The easiest method for them to send money to their family back home would be to simply transfer money to their family's bank account. Unfortunately it's not that easy, as a less than ideal amount of those in Venezuela don't use banks due to proximity or trust.

Reloadable debit cards provided by a few services allow an increased level of flexibility and value for those transfer money back home. Once the card is shipped out, the sender is able to add money onto the card online as often as they would like. Recipients use the card to withdraw funds at most any local ATM. The advantage here going to those who send money on a regular basis. The ease and security provided by this method make it a surely increasing option.

As Venezuelans continue to seek educational and salary opportunities in the US, those that send money to Venezuela will grow concurrently. The method in which they transfer money may become more and more the same, a reloadable debit card.

To learn more about prepaid debit cards or how to send money to Venezuela, check out http://www.atmcash.com/.

Logan Lemberger takes pride in expressing his knowledge on the subjects of travel, personal finance, international relations, sports, and music.

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Yours, Mine and Ours: How Spouses Share and Transfer Property

For most married couples, the cornerstone of estate planning is the transfer of their biggest asset: their home. So it's important that couples be aware of the many roads this process can take.

Married couples who own real property together have many options when deciding how to share the asset. Traditional approaches include joint tenancy, tenancy in common, tenancy by the entirety and community property. All have advantages and disadvantages.

Joint tenancy is a form of concurrent ownership where each owner has an equal interest in the property. It is available to unmarried couples as well, though I will focus on married couples in this article.

Arguably, the most useful feature of a joint tenancy arrangement is the "right of survivorship." When the first spouse dies, his or her stake in the property passes directly to the surviving spouse, without the need for probate administration. During probate, a court determines the validity of the decedent's estate documents and helps to settle any claims against the estate before the property is distributed to the heirs. Avoiding this process can save the beneficiary of an estate substantial costs and time. By foregoing probate, the surviving spouse also gains additional privacy, since the probate process is a matter of public record.

Tenancy in common usually does not have the right of survivorship. However, it allows other customizations, and offers greater flexibility. As in joint tenancy, tenants in common do not have to be married; unlike in joint tenancy, tenants in common may hold unequal interests in the property. Tenancy in common is not dissolved when one of the tenants dies, either. If John and Jane are tenants in common, each with a 50 percent interest in their property, John can bequeath his 50 percent to their son John Jr., and Jane's interest will remain unaffected.

Tenancy by the entirety is available only to married couples, though Hawaii and Vermont offer options for domestic partners and those in civil unions, respectively. For legal purposes, it is as if the property is owned by a single entity (the couple) instead of two parties. Neither party can dissolve the tenancy without the other's consent, except in cases of divorce or annulment. Like joint tenancy, tenancy by the entirety offers a right of survivorship, allowing the surviving spouse to avoid probate. It can also shield the property from creditors of one spouse only, though not from creditors to whom the couple is jointly in debt. Not all U.S. jurisdictions recognize tenancy by the entirety.

Community property laws exist in only nine states: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. In Alaska, couples may enter into community property arrangements, but must do so by signing agreements or forming a trust. The validity of such arrangements is still untried on a federal level, though, and it is not clear whether the Internal Revenue Service will honor them for federal tax purposes.

Although the specifics of community property laws vary from state to state, the basic idea is the same. Like tenancy by the entirety, community property is an option only for married couples. Generally, any property acquired by either spouse during the marriage becomes community property, unless it is a gift or an inheritance. Property owned prior to the marriage is also excluded. Spouses may enter into agreements, such as prenuptial or postnuptial arrangements, that preclude otherwise eligible property from being subject to community property laws, or which convert separate property to community property.

Community property has no right of survivorship. Each owner can dispose of his or her interest individually. As a result, without additional estate planning, most transfers will be subject to probate, even if one spouse simply leaves the entirety of their interest to the other. Creditors can also generally reach the deceased spouse's interest through normal estate administration rules. Community property offers the advantage of allowing a full step-up in basis upon the death of either spouse, which typically allows the survivor to pay taxes on a smaller capital gain should the property be sold.

This is illustrated in the example below, contrasting joint tenancy with community property:

John and Jane purchased a home for $1 million, and it is now worth $2.5 million. Jane has died and John inherited the home. If they owned the property as joint tenants with right of survivorship, John's basis in the property is $1.75 million. This is because only Jane's half of the interest is stepped up to the current market value ($1.25 million). The cost basis of John's half of the interest continues to be based on the $1 million purchase price ($500,000). In contrast, both John's and Jane's interests would be stepped up to the current market value of the home if they had owned it as community property, and John would inherit the home with a cost basis of $2.5 million. This could mean a significant reduction in taxable capital gains if John were to sell the property after Jane's death, even allowing for a potential reduction due to the home-sale exclusion rule. This would also be the case for other property, such as investment assets, owned by the couple.

All of these arrangements offer benefits and drawbacks, which may weigh differently depending on a couple's situation. Joint tenancy and tenancy by the entirety allow the surviving spouse to avoid probate, but do not offer community property's generous terms for a full step-up in basis in the property. Community property risks giving creditors access to the decedent's portion of the property, but also allows more flexibility in the way that property is distributed. Tenancy in common offers the option of unequal interests in the property, but does not have a right of survivorship.

In certain states, couples have yet another option that is relatively new: community property with right of survivorship. In several states, the law has been on the books for less than 15 years. California - the state that has arguably received the most attention on the topic - first implemented these ownership rights in 2001. Of the nine community property states, Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Texas and Wisconsin currently offer the right of survivorship option. Laws also vary by state regarding which property is eligible to be titled as community property with right of survivorship. For example, only real property may be titled this way in Idaho.

The states that offer community property with right of survivorship seek to make it easier for couples that have relatively simple estates to transfer property to a surviving spouse. Before the advent of community property with right of survivorship, married couples had to draft special agreements or use trusts to convert joint property into community property. Community property with right of survivorship allows married couples to take advantage of the full step-up in basis while avoiding probate administration, all without the need for more complex estate planning.

Like any estate planning method, community property with right of survivorship is not a cure-all. For example, should bankruptcy be a concern, joint tenancy or (in some cases) tenancy by the entirety would leave the non-debtor's property out of the bankruptcy proceedings, while property held as community property, with or without the right of survivorship, would move entirely to the bankruptcy trustee's control until proceedings were complete. Couples should carefully examine their situations before deciding which arrangement is likely to carry the most benefits.

Though this option is not prevalent nationwide, financial advisors should be aware of both its benefits and its potential drawbacks. Even if a couple does not currently live in a community property state, they may have once lived in such a state, or they may move to one in the future. If a client lived and purchased real estate in a state that offered community property with right of survivorship, the property may continue to be characterized that way, even if the owners have since moved elsewhere.

Most couples and, too often, the advisors with whom they work tend to overlook important consequences and planning opportunities when deciding how to take or maintain title to property. It is a big decision. Approach it carefully, and consider seeking qualified professional advice to guide you.

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