How can you divide your wealth equally between your children at your death if you gave them different levels of financial support while you were alive?

Let’s assume a $1 million estate is to be divided among four children—John, Paul, George and Ringo. Each would receive $250,000 if divided equally, but you gave John $100,000 to help him with a down payment on his first home.

One method to account for that gift could be to add it to the $1 million estate value before doing the four-way division and subtract it from John’s share. The adjusted estate value would be $1.1 million. Divided four ways, it would be $275,000 each. John, who already received a $100,000 advance on his inheritance, would have that subtracted from his share and receive $175,000. Each of the others would receive the full $275,000. That works no matter how many and how........

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