One of the biggest challenges that clients encounter during the process is deciding who to appoint as their trustees, powers of attorney, health care surrogates and executors.
Just 34% of adult Americans have an estate plan and 37% of respondents said they didn’t have a plan at the ready.
Life insurance is often a cornerstone of a comprehensive estate plan, particularly when an estate consists of largely illiquid assets.
When preparing estate planning documents, certain beneficiaries may need more protection than others. One particular class of beneficiaries that needs to be intentionally considered is minor children.
It is your right to keep your health information private, but is that always what is in your best interests?
An element of advance care planning, a living will is a legal document that provides specific instructions on how to carry out your wishes to receive or decline such treatments when you otherwise can’t communicate those wishes yourself.
There are two documents everyone needs in their estate plan: The Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA) and a Health Surrogacy or Advanced Health Directive.
Nobody wants to think about how their loved ones will cope when they die. However, it’s important to plan effectively to ensure a smooth transition of your wealth and worldly possessions — even if you’re young or feel like you don’t have much to leave behind.
With the largest spike in mortality in the United States in a century, following the onset of the pandemic, providing for one’s pets after death has become a growing topic of conversation for many animal lovers across the country.
My mother told me many times over the years that she had a will, and I believed her. When she passed away, we discovered that her will was 40 years old—and completely useless.
A trust is an estate planning tool that you may consider using if you want to go beyond drafting a last will and testament.
Most people think of wills as written instructions for use after death. In contrast, living wills provide your instructions for continuing or halting life-sustaining healthcare while you’re alive.
People who have had a serious case of COVID-19 are 66% more likely to engage in estate planning, and 32% of adults under 35 said they wrote a will because of the pandemic.
A pot trust, also referred to as a discretionary, sprinkling or common pot trust, is a type of trust that can be used by families to pass on assets. With this type of trust, minor children serve as beneficiaries with a trustee that oversees the management of trust assets. The trustee has discretionary power to decide how the trust funds are used to pay for the care and needs of beneficiaries.
The oldest son of Anne Heche has filed a petition to assume control of the late actress’s estate.
Does a person need a Power of Attorney document if that person already has a Last Will and Testament (‘Will’)? It is a good question.
A living will is a legal document expressing your wishes on receiving or declining medical care or life-sustaining treatments should you become terminally ill or injured and unable to communicate those decisions for yourself.
Do you know what will happen to your property, belongings and debt when you die? What about your children? If you haven’t created an estate plan, now’s the time to start. Here’s how.
Estate planning is not just for the wealthy. Anyone with a bank account, house, car or other personal property should have a will.
Traditional, very simple estate planning may not be sufficient to accomplish estate planning goals in many blended family situations.
During a medical crisis, loved ones must often make decisions quickly on whether to withhold or provide life-sustaining treatments.
Planning for the future provides protection and peace of mind, so it becomes increasingly important to seniors as they approach their twilight years.
Choosing the personal representative of your estate is important. Making the wrong decision can cause utter chaos.
Death, while inevitable, is not often predictable. This can leave many people financially unprepared if their spouse suddenly dies–especially if the deceased was the one that took care of the household balance sheet.
Many people don’t realize the extent of their electronic and digital lives and the potential problems they’re leaving for others to deal with.
Federal estate taxes are no longer a problem for all but the extremely wealthy. However, several states have their own estate taxes and inheritance taxes that could still hit your heirs.
For married same-sex couples, a marriage license may soon no longer be enough to protect their union.
A critical item is often missing from back-to-school college checklists — and it could be far more valuable than anything else your student takes to school this fall: signed legal documents.
As government programs do not cover all expenditures related to these categories, ABLE accounts can be used to pay for shortfalls.
Avoidance of estate taxes is one consideration in estate planning.
