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You don't pay capital gains taxes until you sell the stock. The IRS only taxes you when you cash out. Presumably the articles will show the wealthy "cashing out" via loopholes that evade the tax.

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The trick is to cash out by dying. You can do this by living off loans against your unrealized capital gains. These then get paid off at your death, and there are all kinds of "simple" ways to keep estate untaxed.

I have a friend who is a member of the ultra rich, and this is exactly how his family uses their portfolio. They currently can borrow with .03% interest through their brokerage.

What I’m curious about is at what level of funds flows does it make sense to start using these strategies. The average faang employees income is dominated by shares but a) they weren’t granted in the distant past when the prices were lower so the tax difference isn’t big between income and b) they have different risk tolerances as Bezos can lose half of his net worth and still be unable to spend all his money before he dies.

There must be some level where these strategies make sense but articles like this rarely point them out.

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