My mother just passed away with a 300,000 life insurance policy?

I am the beneficiary and live in massachusetts... will i have to pay taxes on this money?
also, any investment ideas i should think about with this money?

~Your grief over your mother's recent death is impressive. I'm sure she'd be proud.

~Au contraire. I find the comments appropriate and to the point. The jack@ss is the one trusting Yahoo Answers with a 300k tax fraud issue at stake. Report It

Call a CPA!

Yes, you need to pay taxes. Take the money and have a really good weekend.

My condolences on you loss. Life insurance benefits are generally not taxable. What to do with it depends on your age and marital state. Good luck!

Check with a local tax attourney. I would make myself wait at least six months before spending anything other than on the funeral, Let yourself calm down mentally and emotionally before investing. Then ask yourself honestly what do you think your mother would have wanted you to do with it?

Sorry for your loss.
Invest in Real Estate. Condos in Miami give you good money. Buy them in PRE-SALE and sell them after a couple of years.
Or invest in Mexico, also in real Estate, good Return of invesment.

Most Life Insurance benefits are tax free. Depends on the state and the company. As far as investment ideas. There are several I would put it into something guranteed like an annuity. But don't put it into an variable annuity. Also you my want to check on a single premium life insurance. One lup sum payment gives you life insurance and you never have to make payments on it. Stay out of real estate.

If you mother's estate exceeded the estate tax exclusion limit which I believe is currently $3 million including the policy, assuming she was the owner of the policy, then it might be taxable to the estate, but it is not taxable to you personally at least as far as the IRS is concerned. I suspect Massachussetts won't tax it either, but your tax-preparer or financial advisor should be able to answer that.

I would pay a fee-based financial advisor which a few years experience minimum to sit down with you to advise you on investing the money. Interview at least three different planners before picking one. You want to be comfortable with them. A good advisor will look at your entire situation, your experience, you goals, etc. If you get someone who suggests a certain investment before getting all of this information, don't use that advisor. If you've already started a consultation at that point, don't be afraid to fire them and search again. This is your money and you don't want to play games with it.

Do not use a commission-based advisor such as an agent/broker from an investment company and do not even think about getting your advice from an insurance agent. Insurance agents can only sell whole-life insurance and annuities, both of which are not good for most people. That usually doesn't stop them from advising it since it is how they get paid. I would personally also avoid going into a bank and asking them what to do.

When you look for a financial advisor, look for a CFP designation and check to make sure it is current and they are in good standing.

I am not a financial advisor, but I do listen to a couple of financial advice talk shows on a regular basis. What you do or don't do with this money could make a huge difference.

As a life and securities licensed agent, you do not owe any taxes on life insurance proceeds. Before investing the $300,000, you should pay funeral expenses, pay off your debt, and then invest the rest.

I don't know your age and what kind of investment objective you wish to achieve, I would talk to a financial advisor or representative who can help you out. Mutual funds has different objectives that only attracts to certain people. If you want high growth on your investments, you would invest in aggressive growth funds such as Legg Mason Partners Aggressive Growth. If you like some growth while preserving capital, I would invest in Growth Funds and maybe a money market fund. If you like the best of both worlds with High Growth and preservation of capital, then invest on all three types of funds: Aggressive Growth, Growth, and Money Market.

I'm sorry to hear about your mother. I hope you are doing okay. It was very thoughtful of her to carry that much life insurance for your financial security. It usually helps to get a financial advisor who will walk you through the steps of choosing the best way to invest that money. It depends on your financial goals for the future and what your current needs are.

As for the tax implications, here is some information:

When a person insured by a life insurance policy dies during the term of the policy the proceeds are paid to the beneficiary or beneficiaries.

Life insurance death benefit proceeds are usually not subject to state and federal income taxation. But, if there is no beneficiary, the death benefit proceeds of the life insurance policy may be included in the estate of the deceased. Then, it may be subject to state, federal and inheritance taxes.

Also, the proceeds may be subject to federal estate taxation.

If you own all or part of the life insurance policy at the time of your death, the proceeds may be included in your gross estate for federal estate tax purposes.

Also, federal gift taxes and state inheritance taxes may apply to life insurance policy proceeds under certain circumstances.

You may want to consult a tax advisor regarding your questions about any estate, income and gift taxes related to any life insurance policies you own or are considering buying.

Also, your insurance agent should be able to tell you if your life insurance policy benefits will be taxable.

Finally, different taxes may apply to the benefits paid by your life insurance policy if the death benefit is paid to the beneficiary in installments, instead of as a lump sum. The interest portion, if any, of each installment is usually treated as taxable to the beneficiary at ordinary income tax rates, while the remaining principal portion is tax-free.

I hope that helps! Take care and best of luck to you!

Both George and JoeFunSmith said pretty much what I was going to say.

Depending on your age, in your extremely briefly described situation, I would bank 90% of the money in very safe investments for about 6 months while you have time to settle down. Spend the other 10% if you wish.

Relative to your age and income 300,000 can be alot or not so much. You would be best served by using it economically.

No federal income tax. What to do with the money? Assuming you are not already retired, sock it away into a retirement account. Stay away from managed accounts, go for index accounts. Try to select a nice balance of equity and fixed income. Put some in a money market account, for safe keeping.