As we deal with this crisis, it is as good a moment as ever to take stock of your current estate planning documents. If you do not have an estate plan, then this is the time for you to set one up. Despite the term, estate plans are not just all about your estate. More
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The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump earlier last December, features a series of provisions designed largely to help Americans prepare for retirement. As the pension vanishes, more Americans turn towards partially self-sufficient means of preparing for retirement, such as the IRA and the employer-provided
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We all pass away eventually, and we all hope of leaving behind some kind of legacy. The older we get, the more important this becomes – especially as we see our loved ones grow up and lead lives of their own. With age comes time for introspection, and a thoughtful look at the past –
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As we enter a new decade, we gather to set our goals for the year and reflect on the progress made in the last 12 months. Just as it is time for a little spring cleaning, it might also be the perfect time of the year to revisit a crucial element of your family’s financial
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The thing to remember about probate is that, in a best-case scenario, it is boring. And that is a good thing. The probate estate process is not overly complex in most cases, and it does not need to be. If you are in charge of overseeing the probate estate process, it helps to have a
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As we all enter a new decade, it’s likely that we each have drafted up our own plans for the months to come, with dreams of financial stability success, growth, and achievement – whether simply for ourselves, or for our families. While having a resolution for the year to come is good, it is even
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For some reason, there is some misconception about the role that living trusts play in the taxation of estates, and taxes in general. While some living trusts can provide certain tax benefits, it is important to distinctly note that they do not outright avoid taxes. Taxes are still an important consideration for any living trust,
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Losing a loved one can be a traumatic experience, wrought with painful memories and regrets. However, that pain can be made even worse when finding out that there was no space made for you in your loved one’s estate plan. Finding out that the will completely excludes you can be both hurtful, and suspicious –
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For many families, probate is not ideal. It’s hard enough dealing with a loved one’s loss, but to then be inundated with a long and arduous legal process to eventually see their property be rightfully distributed can be frustrating, difficult, and expensive. While the California probate process isn’t as bad as it may be in
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Among estate planning tools, the two most common are wills and trusts. Both accomplish similar things, yet serve entirely different purposes, and can even be used in conjunction with one another. A simplified approach to the topic might lead you to believe that wills are easy and cheap, and trusts are more complex and expensive
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