Many people who inherit wealth or small businesses are at significant risk for essentially squandering the wealth. Here are a few pointers for setting up your beneficiaries for success:
The most effective estate planning strategies often involve the use of irrevocable trusts. But what if you’re uncomfortable placing your assets beyond your control? What happens if your financial fortunes take a turn for the worse after you’ve irrevocably transferred a sizable portion of your wealth? If your marriage is strong, a spousal lifetime access trust (SLAT) can be a viable strategy to obtain the benefits of an irrevocable trust while creating a financial backup plan. Indirect access A SLAT is an irrevocable trust that authorizes the trustee to make distributions to your spouse if a need arises. Like other.
If you own life insurance policies at your death, the proceeds will be included in your taxable estate. Ownership is usually determined by several factors, including who has the right to name the beneficiaries of the proceeds. The way around this problem is to not own the policies when you die. However, don’t automatically rule out your ownership either. And it’s important to keep in mind the current uncertain future of the estate tax. If the estate tax is repealed (or if someone doesn’t have a large enough estate that estate taxes are a concern), then the inclusion of your.
A common misconception is that estate planning equates to death planning. But planning for what happens after you die is only one piece of an estate plan. Just as important is making a plan for what happens if you become incapacitated during your lifetime. If it’s been a few years since you did your planning or if you’ve had any significant changes in your family or financial circumstances, it’s time to come in and make sure your incapacity plan is up to date. Avoiding Time-Consuming and Costly Guardianship or Conservatorship Proceedings Without a comprehensive incapacity plan in place, a judge.
Holidays are about loved ones and so is legal planning. Here are some important questions to ponder this holiday season, as you gather with family and friends. If any of your children received their inheritance today, would you be concerned about how they would handle it? Do you want to protect the money you pass down from your loved ones’ creditors, divorcing spouses, or predators? Do you have enough assets or life insurance to care for your children in your absence? Have you recently created a list of your assets, so that if something happens to you, family knows where.
This weekend, over four thousand theaters across the country were flooded with Star Wars fans. Americans young and old turned out to see the debut of Episode VIII: The Last Jedi. If you were there, you saw Carrie Fisher on screen, reprising her iconic role as Princess Leia Organa. Sadly, the actress who stole our hearts as Luke Skywalker’s unwitting twin sister was not there to see the premiere of this latest installment. On December 27, 2016, she passed away at the age of 60 from a heart attack. Carrie was the daughter of Debbie Reynolds, a major celebrity in.
Some of us are familiar enough with the phrase “estate plan
Choosing someone to administer your estate may be a daunting task. This person is known as a fiduciary or someone who is legally obligated to act in your interest. After you thoughtfully set up your trust and the stipulations for taking care of your loved ones financially, you will need someone to act in your behalf to see it through. He or she will be responsible for continued management of the trust and/or distribution to the beneficiaries. The trustee will consult with the beneficiaries about periodic checks issued from the trust, expenses to be paid and permissible withdrawals against the principal. Here are some considerations for selecting the right person for the job.
