Trusts are an excellent way to pass and preserve wealth privately. Two of the main benefits of using a trust to pass your assets – timeliness and cost – were explored in our previous post. Unlike the probate process that accompanies the settlement of an estate by will, a trust…
Articles Posted in Asset Protection
Adding a Trust to Your Estate Plan
Trusts are an excellent method for individuals with substantial assets to pass their wishes and wealth to others or a charitable organization when they pass. The key to an effective trust begins and ends with documentation. The proper documents, when drafted carefully by a qualified attorney, ensures your beneficiaries will…
Needs of Aging LGBT Community
Families today, as always, come in all shapes and sizes. This includes sexual orientation. As gays, lesbians, bi-sexual, and transgender people (LGBT) age and move into retirement communities, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities, how welcome are they? An individual who has lived a good life at 85 wants to…
Estate Planning Details to Always Disclose to Your Estate Planning Advisor
To create the best possible estate plan, it is critical to not only tell your advisor important information about your case. It is also critical to be honest. Failure to honestly disclose information about your financial status can lead to a number of serious complications and can sometimes even require…
What Does It Meant to Decant a Trust?
It is important to parents and grandparents who are engaged in estate planning to consider the various challenges that can arise. Failure to properly take these issues into consideration can result in estate plans being jeopardized. Fortunately, in these situations, it is possible to decant a trust. This article explores…
Healthy Vision: Taking Care of Your Eyes as You Age
The Roman statesman, Marcus Tullius Cicero once said, “the eyes are the window to the soul.” In reality however, the eyes are the window to hidden health conditions. A dilated eye exam can detect diabetes, hypertension, auto-immune disorders, like Lupus, high cholesterol, thyroid disease, certain cancers, like skin cancer, and…
The Difference between Roth and Traditional IRAs
After learning about IRAs, one of the most common questions that people ask is what is the difference between the various types. As a result, this article reviews some of the primary differences between Roth and traditional IRAs. The Primary Difference between the Two Types of IRAs With traditional IRA…
Why Estate Planning is Critical Even If You Don’t Have Children
Estate planning involves a number of personal decisions. The best estate plans are personalized to the individual that writes them. This is why online, one size fits it all estate planning documents are often not the best idea. This is also why some people struggle to complete their estate planning…
People with Few Assets May Still Benefit From a Trust
It is never easy to estate plan. For one, estate planning involves uncomfortable decisions about how your assets will be divided following your death. Estate planning, however, is critical because it avoids a number of serious obstacles including family disputes, additional taxes, and the probate process. Despite the potential to…
Tips on Picking a Personal Representative
A personal representative named in a Last Testament is allowed to be an out of state resident only if that individual is a blood relative or a relative through an existing marriage. If a representative does not satisfy this criteria, a person is still able to use an alternative to estate…