Estate planning rarely feels urgent until it suddenly is. For Fresno families with real estate, family-owned businesses, agricultural land, or accumulated retirement assets, the current tax environment represents one of the most favorable windows for estate and trust planning, but that window won’t stay open indefinitely.
Understanding what’s at stake in 2026 and moving intentionally now is the difference between a family wealth plan built on current law and one scrambling to catch up after the next legislative cycle.
Where the Exemptions Stand in 2026
The federal estate and gift tax exemption, the amount you can transfer free from federal estate tax either during life or at death, was elevated under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and extended under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). For 2026, the exemption remains at historically high levels, allowing substantial wealth transfers without triggering federal estate tax.
This is especially significant for Central Valley families where wealth is often held in the form of appreciated farmland, business equity, and real estate that has grown significantly in value over decades.
The California Layer
California does not impose a separate state estate tax, which is a meaningful advantage compared to many other states. However, California’s income tax rules around inherited and gifted property, particularly the step-up in basis at death and the rules governing trust distributions, create their own complexity.
Fresno families with significant assets should work with a CPA who understands both the federal estate planning landscape and California’s specific tax treatment of inherited wealth. The two layers interact in ways that can either create significant savings or trigger unexpected tax consequences depending on how assets are structured and transferred.
Common Estate Planning Moves for Central Valley Business Owners
For Fresno business owners, estate planning isn’t just about what happens when you’re gone, it’s about how you structure ownership today to minimize tax friction and ensure the business can transfer to the next generation intact.
Revocable living trusts help assets avoid probate and can facilitate efficient transfer to heirs, keeping the process private and streamlined. Irrevocable trusts can remove assets from the taxable estate while retaining certain benefits during your lifetime. Charitable remainder trusts provide income during life while ultimately benefiting charitable causes, and generating current tax deductions that can meaningfully reduce income tax liability in high-income years. For Central Valley families with significant charitable intent, these structures can accomplish estate goals and current-year tax goals simultaneously.
For families with multiple children or grandchildren, systematic gifting programs using the annual gift tax exclusion can move meaningful wealth out of the taxable estate over time without triggering gift taxes or using any of the lifetime exemption.
Business Succession and the Tax Intersection
For family-owned businesses, whether a Fresno construction company, a Central Valley agricultural operation, or a franchise restaurant group, succession planning integrates estate planning, business structure, and tax strategy into a single conversation. How ownership is structured today, and whether minority interests are appropriately valued, directly affects what heirs will owe when the business transfers.
The valuation of closely-held business interests is also one of the most scrutinized areas by the IRS. Having a Fresno CPA with IRS representation experience involved in your estate planning, not just an attorney, ensures that the accounting and financial documentation supporting your plan can withstand examination.
Why 2026 Is the Right Time to Act
Tax law changes have accelerated in recent years. The OBBBA extended favorable exemption levels, but future legislative changes can’t be predicted with certainty. Families who complete gifting strategies, fund trusts, or restructure business ownership under current rules are protecting themselves against changes that waiting simply doesn’t allow.
The planning steps that make the most sense to evaluate now include reviewing whether your current estate documents reflect your actual asset mix and family situation, modeling the tax impact of transferring specific assets, particularly appreciated real estate or business equity, under current exemption levels, and ensuring your business succession plan is coordinated with your overall estate structure. For Central Valley families with agricultural land that has appreciated significantly over generations, the combination of elevated exemptions and coordinated CPA planning can make a generational difference in what gets transferred versus what goes to taxes.
At DeMera DeMera Cameron, we work with Fresno families and business owners to handle the tax side of estate planning, ensuring that the structures your estate attorney designs are implemented in a way that minimizes income tax exposure, capital gains consequences, and compliance risk over time.
Call DDC at (559) 226-9200 to discuss how 2026 estate planning opportunities align with your family’s financial goals. Our Fresno CPA team has served Central Valley families and business owners for over 80 years, and the tax side of estate planning is one of the most consequential services we provide.