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Top Reasons to Do Estate Planning--What are You Waiting For?

People have many different reasons to do estate planning. This article discusses the top 8 reasons which estate planning attorneys say motivate their clients to plan, which range from vacations to law changes. The bottom line is that people do estate planning in order to take care of their loved ones and to assure the legacy they envision. Don't wait until it is too late, create a plan today and ensure that when you pass away your loved ones will discover a coherent estate plan without the emotional and financial mess.

Dos and Don'ts of Managing an Inheritance

An inheritance is a bittersweet thing. Your loved one valued your relationship enough to leave you something to make your life better, you want to honor their memory and use the inheritance wisely. This article lists important "Dos" and "Dont's" to follow regarding the use of your inheritance. Also mentioned in this article are tips to consider if your inheritance is in an IRA. All too often inheritances are squandered on meaningless items, take some time to consider your options and make a difference with your inheritance.

When Father Time Catches Up With Our Parents

We all expect it to happen eventually. Our parents getting older. Not just older chronologically, but physically and mentally older as well. When these turn of events happen, there may also come a time when your parents will need more care than you can provide on your own. They may eventually need in-home care, or an assisted living facility, or even a nursing home. Are you prepared? In this article you will find out the steps you should take to secure your parents future, as well as your own. Also discussed is your ability to help them plan now for these eventual needs and help them prepare for this next stage in life when the time comes.

Preserving Grandma's Legacy

You find your grandma's estate planning documents when you're helping her organize her attic. The documents were dated two decades ago, just before grandpa died. After grandma dies, the assets will have to be split among her three kids. However, since the estate plan was drafted, the family's circumstances have changed considerably and things aren't quite that simple anymore. Leaving her assets outright to her 3 children would mean that their inheritance would be lost to creditors and medical expenses. This article discusses the importance of having an up-to-date estate plan to preserve your legacy and family history as well as having a conversation with family members about their own planning.

Preserving Your Independence

As we get older, it often seems that time accelerates. Where does all the time go? Aging is a normal part of life. Unfortunately, as we age later in life we are no longer as able-bodied as when we were younger. What would happen if your health took a turn for the worst? This article discusses planning for the future using a Medicaid Income Only Trust. This type of trust can help preserve your financial independence, but there are certain guidelines that must be followed. Plan to protect your independence, see a qualified estate planning and elder law attorney today and discuss your options.

Living Trusts Enhance Privacy Protection

One of our primal fears is the fear of not having privacy and the protections which privacy provides. Today, anyone can find a great deal of information about you by doing simple online searches. This article discusses the privacy advantages of having a Revocable Living Trust, there are more than you may know. A qualified estate planning attorney can help you create a trust to protect your privacy and provide peace of mind both during life and after your death.

Family Feud - Don't Let This Be Your Legacy

Few things are as heart-wrenching as a dispute among family members. Problems in an estate or trust can often cause deep divisions in a family, divisions that outside forces might never have been able to cause. This article discusses five easy steps you can take to avoid disputes over your estate and ensure harmony continues long after your death.

Pet Planning - Not Just for the Rich and Eccentric

When people think of someone setting up a Trust for their pet, they might imagine Leona Helmsley's pet Maltese named Trouble drinking Perrier from a crystal bowl in a lavish Manhattan penthouse. However, you don't have to be rich and eccentric to set up a Pet Trust to care for their beloved pet(s). Pet Trusts are most commonly set up by caring individuals who just want to make sure that their non-human family member is taken care of in the event of their own death or disability. This article discusses the 3 easy steps necessary to set up a Pet Trust for your furry and feathered family members. Remember, without you planning for them in advance, they may face the same awful fate that awaits so many other orphaned pets. You will sleep better knowing that they will continue purring or wagging their tail even if you're no longer able to care for them.

4 Deaths, 3 Estate Planning Mistakes

What would you want to leave behind for your family when you pass away? If the answer is not a contentious mess, then planning is required. Unfortunately, only 44% of Americans have a simple Will, much less a well-coordinated estate plan. In this story there are 4 deaths with 4 different outcomes. Each had the best of intentions but only one provided for their loved ones after their passing. A qualified estate planning attorney, one who focuses his or her practice in estate planning, can help you craft a well-coordinated estate plan that will provide for your loved ones who were left behind and avoid the 3 mistakes made by these families.

When Time Is Short

Thinking about the end of a loved one's life is always tough to do. But what if you learned your mother only had one year to live, what would you do? After discussing treatment options, hospice, and her health care management, it may be wise to talk with your mom about setting an appointment with her estate planning attorney. Chances are her current estate plan isn't up-to-date, or worse does not exist. This article reviews a number of issues that should be discussed with her estate planning attorney to ensure your mothers' wishes are taken care of and her assets protected. This will help alleviate concerns and let your mom focus on making the most of her last days with her loving family.

Eighteen and Alone: The Legal Risks of Independence

When your child turns eighteen, it may feel like nothing has changed. But, disconcerting as it may be, for all legal purposes, turning eighteen makes your child an adult. Even more disturbing is the fact that without proper legal safeguards, you may no longer have any say in their medical care or financial matters. This article reviews the barriers that may prevent you from accessing your child's medical information in case of an accident or illness. Also discussed in this article are several legal safeguards that can be used to prevent this from happening to you and your child.

Don't Trust Your Legacy to Just Anyone

When we plan our estates, we must take into account the potential life changes that may arise for our surviving family members and ensure that we provide inheritance protection from the many real world dangers that may come up in today's times. However, not all estate plans are created equal. The knowledge and experience of the attorney you retain could make a significant difference in the lives of your surviving family members. Learn what to look for in the attorney you work with and the importance of including divorce, remarriage and lawsuit protection in your estate plan.

Powers of Attorney - May Not Be Enough

This article examines the limitations of using a power of attorney to delegate decision-making authority to someone else. It explores the solutions available through the use of a living trust by nominating someone as successor trustee.

Same-Sex Marriage Confusion

This article examines the impact of Californias landmark decision to allow same-sex marriages for both state and out-of-state residents. It clarifies the impact that this decision has on out-of-state residents and what responsibilities other states have of recognizing same-sex marriages performed in California.

What's in a Word?

The article examines how George Carlin's comedy shows that the use of words can be important. The article looks at why that is also true in estate planning.

IRS Clamps Down on Wesley Snipes and Other Tax Protesters

This article highlights the recent trial of Wesley Snipes on criminal tax protester charges and transitions into a discussion of the fraudulent promotion of trusts, such as "pure trusts," "constitutional trusts" and "common law trusts" as a purported means of avoid income taxation. The article concludes by recommending that the consumer consult with a knowledgeable estate planning attorney for the preparation of their trust and estate plan.

Death and Tragedy

The article looks at the tragedy of family disputes and how to avoid them.

The Passing of a Loved One

The article examines the seven elements which may be included in an estate plan: Health Care Power of Attorney, HIPAA Power, General Durable Power of Attorney, Revocable Living Trust, Pour Over Will, Funeral Trust, and Legacy Plan.

Protecting Your Children from Our Litigious Society

How can you protect your children and their inheritance from litigation? This article explains how some innovative trust, the Family Sentry Trust and the Family Access Trust can help.

What's Important in Your Life?

This article looks at what's important in life: family, friends, and values. The article looks at tragedies in our lives and how we always come back to what's important in life. The article then transitions to a discussion of Legacy Planning. The article discusses the Family Wealth Trust, the Family Access Trust, and how they may be used as part of Legacy Planning to protect the children after you are gone.

Legacy Planning: A Holistic Approach

This article looks at the latest developments in estate planning: "Legacy Planning." Legacy Planning focuses on the values and guidance to be relayed to future generations, not just wealth. The article discusses The Family Wealth Trust and its two subtrusts, the Family Access Trust and the Family Sentry Trust and how they can protect the beneficiaries from divorce and creditors.

What's Probate and Should I Care?

The article examines what probate is and why it is best avoided, and how. The article also examines the holistic concept of "legacy planning."

What's the Worst That Can Happen?

We often think that estate planning only deals with our assets at our death. This article debunks that myth and shows how a lack of planning can have negative consequences even during your life and not just on your assets.

Planning for Unforeseen Circumstances

The article examines the importance of drafting flexibility into your estate plan to adjust for changes in values, circumstances, and interests.

Protect Your Children Now and in the Future

The article examines how you can use a Family Access Trust or a Family Sentry Trust to protect the inheritance you will leave to your children.

Three Myths Women Have About Estate Planning

This article looks at several myths women have about estate planning. It includes some statistics that show why estate planning has more impact on women.

To My Dog, Lucky, I Leave $10,000

The article examines the use of "pet trusts" and a few examples of how pets were provided for in the past.

Protecting Your Children from Their Nightmares... and Yours

The article examines statistics regarding divorce in America and how to protect your children from divorce. It examines setting up a divorce protection trust for them as well as using a marital trust for second marriages for your own assets.

Learn from Anna Nicole's Mistakes

The article examines Anna Nicole's Will and that she did not update it upon major changes in her life: death of a son, birth of a daughter, commitment ceremony to Howard K. Stern. It suggests that the reader learn from these mistakes and be sure to update their plan periodically.

Waiting to Roth: Hidden Loophole for High-income Earners

The article explains a few different types of retirement plans and then looks at a loophole for high-income earners to make contributions to a non-deductible IRA now and then convert it to a Roth IRA in 2010, when income limits for such conversion are lifted.

Your 401k or IRA: A Problem Asset?

The article looks at IRAs and 401ks and how we need to save for retirement. Then it looks at the tax problems these plans create. It examines the stretch out available with the FRPT. It also examines using distributions to fund life insurance.

What Happens in My Initial Estate Planning Consultation?

This article describes what happens in the initial estate planning consultation, including the questions asked, the discussion of goals, etc. The article also references a CNNfn segment that talked about the importance of stringent continuing education requirements, like those of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

How to Leave a Mess to Your Heirs

This article examines several common mistakes that create a mess for heirs: Lifetime Transactions without counsel (such as adding people on title to realty), Failure to Plan, and Failure to Communicate. The article poses the problem and then offers a solution to each.

Anna Nicole Smith Can Teach Us a Few Things

The article examines the life of Anna Nicole Smith, her marriage, and the will dispute controversy. It encourages readers to be open about their wishes to family members and instructs on the use of a no contest clause.

Do You Want Your Spouse to Lose Your Biggest Asset?

The article examines how beneficiary designations must be coordinated in order to have an effective estate plan. It looks at the story of a woman who forgot to change her beneficiary designations. As a result her husband of 20 years did not get her retirement plan proceeds.

Smart People Do Estate Planning

The article examines the statistics of who does estate planning. It shows that people who are more educated are more likely to do estate planning. It recites reasons that you want to plan. Basically, the article is a call to action to the reader to take control of his or her life by planning.

Celebrity Estate Planning

The article examines interesting provisions of the wills of many famous people. It explains how this information is public and that if you use a trust you can keep your affairs private.

How Do Millionaires Do It?

The article examines the five different types of millionaires and what makes them tick. It asserts that planning is at the core for all of them and that estate planning is necessary to avoid problems down the road.

Dealing with Aging Parents

The article examines how the parents took care of the kids and how the kids then take care of the parents. It looks at the need to plan in advance for wealthy parents (estate tax reduction), not so wealthy parents (Medicaid planning), and any parents (powers of attorney, etc.).

Protecting Your Assets

This provides an overview of asset protection strategies.

Handling Matters After the Death of a Loved One: Just Do It

The article examines the need to administer an estate or trust in a timely manner. It looks at several pitfalls resulting from inaction after someone's death, including not filing tax returns, not notifying creditors, etc.

Want a Nude Funeral? Have it Your Way

he article tells the story of a Midwestern nudist who wanted to be buried in the nude but was not. It examines what people can do to ensure their burial wishes are carried out.

When Disaster Strikes

This article examines how tragedies can strike in any of our lives but how planning can lessen the impact. Estate planning can let you rest easier and make sure others have the legal right to help you when you need it.

Advantages for Unmarried Couples

There are many advantages for married couples. However, there are a few ways that unmarried couples can take advantage of the system. The article examines two such ways, one simple (harvesting losses by selling a loss asset to the other partner) and one complex (a Grantor Retained Income Trust which is not allowed for related parties).

What to Do after a Loved One Dies

Clients often have uncertainty regarding the process after death. The article looks at the typical roles, such as trustee and executor, and explains their duties. The article directs the reader to contact an estate planning / administration attorney. The article mentions a couple post-mortem steps such as gathering assets and cautions against retitling assets or making distributions until talking with the attorney.

Asset Protection Planning in Litigious Times

In our ever increasingly litigious society it is essential to protect yourself from potential creditors. The article examines asset protection techniques in maintaining insurance to the use of asset protection trust.

How to Lend a Hand and Save Taxes

Lately it seems like natural disasters are daily occurrences. While reading the newspaper over breakfast, we learn of a wildfire in Arizona. While driving to work, we hear of a drought in Africa and an epidemic in Southeast Asia. A hurricane in North Carolina, a flood in Missouri, a tornado in Oklahoma, an earthquake in California - we feel empathetic for the victims, but often feel powerless to help. We are too far to fill sandbags and are not close enough to the victims to lend a helping hand or a shoulder to cry on.

Community Property Makes a Difference

In estate planning, the nature of the property involved can make a significant difference in determining the best way to plan for its ultimate disposition.

When Parent and Child Reverse Roles

When we start off in life, our parents provide love and nurturing, as well as the necessities of daily life. As time passes, we grow into adulthood. Our relationship with our parents becomes one of equals, with each providing love and nurturing for the other, while both are self-sufficient. Often, parents reach a stage in their lives when they are no longer self-sufficient, typically due to advanced age or illness.

Disinheritance Is a Serious Option

Most people are seeking the best way to get assets to their loved ones. However, sometimes the best way to do that is by disinheriting or threatening to disinherit someone.

Are You Married - You May Be and Not Know It!

You are probably thinking to yourself "How is this possible?!" It is true, you may be married and not know it-even without a quick trip to Las Vegas.

Choosing Just the Right Gift

We all know from firsthand experience how important it is to choose the right gift for someone. We know that the thought we put into the gift is as important as its worth. Each of us can think back to a birthday, anniversary, or holiday when someone close to us gave us something that was truly meaningful to us because of the thoughtfulness behind it. Maybe they put together a photo album of treasured moments. Maybe they gave us a trip which opened our eyes and broadened our minds.

Choosing Beneficiaries Is Not Enough

Determining who should inherit your assets is a surprisingly difficult task for many of us. However, with time and due consideration, an answer comes. Now you are ready to tell the world who should inherit your assets and who should not get anything. This seems relatively straightforward. However, things often are not as simple as they superficially appear.

Planning for the Future Without a Crystal Ball

hen planning for the future, none of us has a crystal ball. So, we must plan our affairs based on current circumstances while trying to anticipate a whole range of possible future events.

Failure to Plan Compounds Tragedy for Same-Sex Partners

On September 11, 2001, tragedy struck all of us as terrorists used passenger planes as lethal weapons, striking fear into our hearts and sadness into our souls. The events of that day made us feel powerless.

Beneficiary Designations: the Hidden Trap

More and more of us recognize the need for careful, methodical estate planning. We prepare our wills and trusts. We labor over who should be guardians for our children and who should be trustees and executors. We decide how and when our children or other loved ones should get what we leave behind. However, all too often people who thought they had it all planned fall into a hidden trap: improper beneficiary designations.

Can I deduct my charitable contribution even if it wasn't cash?

Countless people make charitable contributions each year. Some people give cash. Some people give their old car, others the very shirts off their backs. Some give shares of stock, and others give their time.

Planning It Right the Second Time Around

Increasingly, Americans do not remain with their first spouse for life. According to a 2001 study by the National Center for Health Statistics of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, twenty percent of first marriages face "disruption" (defined as separation or divorce) within the first five years. One-half of all first marriages face disruption within the first twenty years of marriage.

Choosing a Trustee

The centerpiece of most estate plans is a living trust, which provides flexibility disposing of assets, management of assets during incapacity, and avoidance of probate. While there are many options to consider structuring a trust, perhaps the most important issue is the identity of the trustee.

Ignorance of the Law is No Excuse in Estate Planning

It is often said that "ignorance of the law is no excuse." This expression dates back at least four centuries. The expression is attributed to 17th century British jurist John Selden. He is quoted as saying: "Ignorance of the law excuses no man; not that all men know the law, but because 'tis an excuse every man will plead, and no man can tell how to confute him."

How Does Moving Affect My Estate Planning?

Moving can be a difficult and disruptive process. We sort through our belongings and reassess our needs. We pack up our dishes, our clothes, and our lives. Moving is an ideal time to plan for the future and to adjust plans we've already made. Moving across town can be difficult. Moving to another state adds another level of complexity.

I'm a Trustee, Now What Do I Do?

We've all heard of trusts. Trusts are used as an estate planning tool to avoid probate and to provide flexible planning to accomplish personal and tax goals. But where does a trustee fit into the picture?

It Could Have Been Me

Millions of Americans watched in horror on September 11, 2001 as terrorist-controlled jumbo jets struck at our buildings and our hearts. The attacks killed thousands of Americans. Now, we are left cleaning up the mess.

If You Really Love Me, Don't Leave Me Anything!

This sounds like an odd statement, but it may be very accurate. Leaving assets directly to children or other beneficiaries may cause them problems which could be easily avoided or reduced by leaving them the assets in trust rather than outright. Even if the child is a very capable adult, it is often better to leave the assets in trust. The child can receive the assets in trust and could be trustee of that trust. As trustee, the child could invest the assets as desired, could purchase a home with trust assets and live in it, and could even start a small business. All of this can be done while leaving the assets in the trust. Further, as trustee, the child could make distributions needed for his or her health, education, maintenance and support, or that of his or her own children. Finally, the child can be given a power to determine who should get any remaining assets at his or her own death.

Economic Downturn Leaves Many With Hard Decisions Regarding Retirement Plans

Recent layoffs due to the economic downturn have left many employees with the decision of how to manage their corporate retirement plan. One choice is to take the plan proceeds as a lump sum distribution and pay income taxes on the total amount. Another choice is to roll over the company plan into an individual retirement account ("IRA"). A third choice, if the company retirement plan provides for it, is to leave the retirement assets with the company for as long as the plan allows.

Getting the Most Out of Your Legacy Assets: Provide For Your Well Being and That of Your Heirs

Are you familiar with the term "Legacy Assets"? Well, you may not have heard it termed in such a way, but you may have them. They are assets specifically set aside as an inheritance for children, grandchildren or other loved ones. Many people place great importance on the ability to leave something to family members after their death. Unfortunately, many people who have legacy assets are not putting them to much use. It is not uncommon to earmark thousands of dollars as an inheritance, only to be sitting in a bank account, doing not much of anything. This is due to the cautious, yet wise, desire to have the assets available for any unforeseeable expenses, such as long term convalescent care. The need for long term care security and the desire to maximize an inheritance don't have to be mutually exclusive, thanks to a relatively new form of life insurance - Living Benefit Life Policies.

Providing for Your Children in Your Revocable Living Trust: Don't Overlook Special Needs Planning

If you're a parent who has taken the time and energy to create a Revocable Living Trust ("RLT") you should be commended for your initiative and perseverance for ensuring your children and grandchildren are properly cared for when you are gone. If you have not yet created an estate plan, doing so could be one of the most important actions you can take on behalf of your children's future well being. A properly drafted estate plan designates who will care for your minor children upon your death, as well as providing for the smooth transfer of wealth to your children. Many parents assume that making sure a child is financially secure after they are gone means leaving the assets outright to the children. For many reasons, such as a child's inability to manage finances, outright distribution of your assets to your children may not be the most prudent option. This becomes especially true if any of the beneficiaries of your trust estate have, or develop in the future, special needs and require the assistance of government aid.

Government Assistance for Those with Disabilities

Living life with a disability can often be tough. But if you or a loved one is afflicted with a disability, know that you don't have to struggle on your own to make ends meet. The government provides aid to those with disabilities in various ways. The four largest and most common forms of government aid are Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, Medicare and Medicaid.

I Already Prepared My Will or Trust: Do I Still Need an Attorney?

Many people have the misconception that once they have created a Revocable Living Trust, they no longer need the services of their estate planning attorney. After all, a Living Trust avoids Guardianships and Probate, and attorneys and the court are involved in each of these processes. So, obviously the planning that was done eliminated the need for any future services of the estate planning attorney. Nothing could be further from the truth. There are a number of times the services of an estate planning attorney are needed.

Holdback Provisions: Preparing Your Estate Plan for All of Life's Contingencies

t is no surprise to find that parents want to provide for their children and grandchildren both during life and after a parent's death. To this end, many smart parents employ some form of estate planning, most commonly through the use of trusts. However, the manner in which the trust is structured can greatly affect whether your dispositive wishes are fulfilled. Without proper planning, circumstances such as a child's divorce or financial irresponsibility can result in unintended beneficiaries of your hard-earned assets.

Estate Planning: Know the Terminology

Although thinking of one's own death is an uncomfortable task, most people agree that initiating some form of estate planning is prudent. However, some people may feel intimidated by meeting with an attorney to discuss their needs because of an unfamiliarity with the law. A good lawyer will discuss your available options in simple terms that a person with no legal training can comprehend. But you can also relieve some of that hesitancy by familiarizing yourself with legal terminology before meeting with a qualified estate planning attorney to discuss the appropriate choices for you.

Estate Planning in Light of a Remarriage: Ensuring the Care of Your Children

The staggering amount of divorces that occur in today's society is all too well known. Depending upon the circumstances that lead to the break-up of any marriage, one may think that getting into another such arrangement would be out of the question. However, this is not always the case. In fact, the Stepfamily Association of America reports that about 43% of all marriages are remarriages for at least one of the adults, and of these, about 65% involve children from a prior marriage.

Home Sale Gain Exclusion: Do You Qualify if Your Home is in Your Revocable Living Trust?

Many real estate markets around the country have experienced a dramatic rise in home values in recent years. If you are fortunate to be someone who has ridden the wave upwards, you may be wondering what will happen when you decide to sell your home and cash-in on the appreciation of its value. A first inclination may be to cringe at the thought of the government taking its share of such gains. But do not worry, as the government offers homeowners a valuable tax break for which many taxpayers qualify. However, do you qualify if your home is titled in the name of your Revocable Living Trust?

Financial and Estate Planning for the Dual Income Family

In today's world, it is more common than ever to find dual income households. Recent estimates by the Department of Labor find that women comprise around 47 percent of the American workforce. Compare this percentage to 1960 accounts estimating women in the workplace at around 33 percent. Because of the proliferation of working women, special planning is necessary to properly address the issues faced by households where both spouses work.

Encouraging Your Descendants to Become Productive Members of Society

Many adults work their whole lives, building their wealth to provide for themselves and their families. This desire to provide often survives death, as many people desire to build an inheritance large enough to provide for their children and grandchildren once they are gone. However, the desire to have sufficient assets to leave to descendants brings with it a dilemma. How do you leave assets to your children and grandchildren without marring their sense of hard work and accomplishment? A trust with incentive provisions might be the answer.

After the Divorce: The Work's Not Over Yet

Unfortunately, it's common knowledge that divorce is on the rise in America. The statistics are astonishing, and it must be acknowledged as a possible reality for anyone contemplating or currently in a marriage. If it does occur, surviving the actual divorce process may seem difficult enough, but the hard work associated with returning your life to some semblance of normalcy doesn't end there. Divorce also affects your estate plan.

Why Gay and Lesbian Couples Need Estate Planning

Equality is something everyone wants and expects. Often though, equality is not an option for everyone. Gay and lesbian couples face discrimination at work, at school and in social settings. Their sexuality plays a role in how they are treated every day - by employers, family members, friends and even strangers. But it's how they are treated after one Partner dies that may be even more unsettling.

Joint Tenancy: Friend or Foe?

If you're like many people who don't have an Estate Plan, you probably hold some of your assets as Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship. This is a form of ownership where two or more people have their names on the title of an asset, and upon one owner's death; his or her share of the asset passes to the remaining owner(s). While there are advantages to joint ownership, there are many pitfalls to keep in mind.

Non-Citizen Spouses: The Rules Are Not the Same

When it comes to estate taxes, married couples in which one spouse is a resident non-citizen are treated differently than married couples where both spouses are U.S. citizens. Generally, assets that pass between spouses at the first death are free from estate taxes due to the Unlimited Marital Deduction, no matter how large the estate. However, where the surviving spouse is a resident non-citizen, the Unlimited Marital Deduction is not automatically available. Although the government allows all taxpayers to pass a certain amount of assets at death estate tax-free, called the Applicable Exclusion Amount ("AEA"), estate taxes will be due on amounts in excess of the AEA (currently $675,000) unless proper estate planning is in place.

Don't Overlook Personal Property When Creating Your Estate Plan

Planning for all of life's contingencies is a difficult task, yet one which must be attempted. This is especially true when dealing with your death. Prudence suggests that you create an effective Estate Plan delineating your wishes as to the care of your minor children, your burial arrangements, and the disposition of your assets, to name a few. However, even people who meticulously prepare their Estate Plans often overlook their personal property, which can cause problems. Here's an example of how things can go wrong: Several years ago, a widower passed away. He thought he planned out every detail of what would happen after he was gone. He had family discussions about how his major assets were to be divided, but the widower never considered his personal property in his plan.

Estate Planning: Minimizing Taxes Is Only Part of the Equation

When our national or state law-making bodies begin talking about decreasing or increasing estate taxes, a flood of reaction pours out in anticipation. Throughout our history of legislation, there have been few moments of anticipation worth the hoopla. Estate taxation laws are rarely changed for the benefit of the taxed. Yet every time a change is proposed, many people delay, or entirely ignore proper estate planning in anticipation of what never happens.

After the Fact: Easing the Financial Burden After A Spouse's Death

A Living Trust can be a great way to fulfill your estate planning goals, including minimizing taxes on that estate. But sometimes, an unexpected death can occur before a Living Trust is established. Or, sometimes after a spouse has died, it is discovered that he or she did not properly fund a living trust.

But Wait, There's More: The Importance of Trust Administration

Many people probably think that once they have an estate plan in place their needs have been met. They are ready to move on, and feel secure in the knowledge that when they die their estate will be handled according to their wishes. To some extent this is true. Your wishes will be carried out and you will save your family time and money, but setting up the plan is only the beginning of the estate planning process. It is imperative that you review your plan regularly with your estate planning attorney. Buying or selling property, getting divorced, significant changes in income, and many other life-changing circumstances can impact your estate plan. In addition to regularly updating your plan while you are living, someone must be selected to manage the plan after you die. Trust administration is a vitally important and often misunderstood (or ignored) aspect of an estate plan that includes a trust. Trust administration allows for the orderly settling of the decedent's legal and financial affairs, including the disbursement of assets to the trust beneficiaries.

Don't Get Scammed . . . Get Smart

Estate planning has been in the news lately with stories on CNN and articles in Time, Money, and Fortune. Many of these stories have focused on the use of living trusts. It's important to remember that there are several types of trusts - some are legal, many are not. It is also important to know what those illegitimate trusts are and why you want to avoid them. Not only is using one of these trusts illegal, but you could end up losing your money and paying taxes, interest, and fees in addition to any civil or criminal penalties.

A Power of Attorney or the Powers That Be . . . Make the Right Choice

Its likely that youve heard of the Power of Attorney (POA). Most people have. We generally assume its a way for someone else to take control of our assets if we become incapacitated or, as we often see in the movies, we are "declared incompetent." This can be true, but theres a lot more to it than that. The POA is a way for you (the principal) to give some control of your assets or your medical care to another person (the agent or attorney-in-fact).

Have It Your Way - Even After You're Gone

According to a recent article, parents are becoming ever more concerned about leaving large inheritances to their children. As a result, they are looking for estate planning tools that will help them to maintain some control over those inheritances even after they're gone. You can spend your money however you choose. It's your choice whether you want to manage it with incentives or simply control how much money is disbursed to your heirs. Family Incentive Trusts (FIT), as they are now being called, are becoming increasingly popular, especially for those with very large estates.

Don't Let Probate Get You... Twice

Almost everyone dreams of someday owning a little log cabin on a river in Montana or a beachfront condo in California or Florida. For some, a simple timeshare will do, or maybe you want to retire to Arizona and play golf and retain your family home as a rental property. Perhaps your family has property that has passed down from generation to generation and you want to continue that tradition. Many people end up owning more than one piece of property in their lifetime, and often those properties are not located in the same state. As if estate planning werent confusing enough, what can you do when you own an interest in real estate in another state?

Living Trusts: Calculating the Benefits

Living Trusts have quickly become the most popular estate planning tool, allowing families to avoid probate and other legal quagmires, lower taxes and protect privacy.

Joint Tenancy: A Bitter Inheritance

When the kids were small, your blustering threat that you'd "pull the car over right now" was enough to quell many sibling disputes, at least those likely to arise on the road in the old Ford Country Squire. Improper estate planning can bring back those memories - by rekindling childish jealousies among your adult offspring.

Estate Planning for Your Grandchildren's Education

Many grandparents want to help provide funds for the education expenses of their grandchildren. With the increased value of the stock market over the last several years, many grandparents have more discretionary resources available to provide such support.
The question is: How do you do it? There may be delicate family issues involved. Perhaps the grandparents' children are not financially responsible, causing the grandparents to have a natural concern about giving money to their children for the educational expenses of the grandchildren.

Update Your Estate Plan or You May Disinherit a Loved One

Most estate planning attorneys periodically remind their clients of the importance of updating their estate plans. Unfortunately, many clients do not follow up and fail to update their plans. Estate planning is a unique discipline. There is no more important matter to society than the death of one of its members. The rules that determine who receives the property of a decedent are slow to change and highly technical in their application.

Basic Estate Planning for Unmarried Couples

The estate planning concerns of unmarried partners are very similar to the concerns of married partners. They are: (1) providing economic protection for the surviving partner; (2) providing for family members at the death of the surviving partner while paying as little as possible in estate taxes; (3) asset protection for the surviving partner, including protecting the surviving partner from creditors and lawsuits; (4) meeting the surviving partners future medical costs; and (5) protecting the property from the surviving partners inability or inexperience in managing money.

If You Don't Plan Your Estate, the Government Will

Did you know that you have an estate plan even if you've never made a will or trust? Its true. The government has prepared a stand-by estate plan for everyone who has failed to plan his or her estate. The governments estate plan is variously called Intestacy, Intestate Succession or Descent and Distribution Rules.

Joint Tenancy, a Will or a Trust? What's the Best Way to Plan Your Estate?

Only the woefully uninformed believe that Intestate Probate, also known as the governments estate plan for you if you dont have your own, is preferable to creating your own estate plan.

What is Probate and Why Should You Care?

Probate is one of those terms we generally don't become familiar with until the death of a loved one or until we consult an estate planning attorney. But probate can be an expensive, lengthy and painful process that can eat away in fees and costs assets that took a lifetime to accumulate.

Special Children Require Special Estate Plans

Raising and caring for children is a lifetime commitment. Parents of a child with special needs (disabled, mentally retarded) have a much bigger responsibility both during their lives and after they're gone. They need to plan their estates properly to ensure their child remains well-cared for and is still eligible for government and private aid. This article addresses these important issues.

Foreign Spouses and the QDOT

Today the international scope of business, education and travel brings more and more foreign nationals to American soil, where they take up residency, marry and raise families. Although foreign nationals enjoy many of the same benefits as citizens, there are distinct differences. One is the inablility to use the Unlimited Marital Deduction to reduce estate taxes. How to use a QDOT to protect the financial well-being of a resident foreign national is the focus of this article.

Why Estate Planning is a Woman's Issue

Although estate planning is important to every American, the fact remains that women have an even greater stake in their families' wisely implemented estate plan. That's because women on average still outlive their mates, and often by several years. Why women should take an active role in assuring that this important task is completed - - and the consequences they face when it is not - - are clearly portrayed in this well-researched article. This download is a ZIP containing a long and a short version, in Word format.

Keeping It All in the Family with the Family Limited Partnership

The Family Limited Partnership is a well-rounded estate planning strategy that helps families pass wealth from one generation to another in a highly advantageous way that gains tax breaks without sacrificing control. This article explains how.

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