Estate planning is often looked at as something that only "old people" need to be concerned about, but is this perception accurate? The reality is that it is not because people of all ages die every day. Yes, it is true that the average lifespan in the United States right now is 78 years, but that is indeed an average and it is not some type of guarantee. If you were to pass away without an estate plan you clearly will not be around to suffer the consequences. When you … [Read more...] about Are You Too Young For An Estate Plan?
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Medicaid: What Can Healthy Spouse Retain?
A lot of people are not aware of just how much a stay in a nursing home costs and they don't especially care, and this is often for one of two reasons. There are always going to be individuals who feel as though they will avoid all challenging circumstance, reasoning that these types of things only happen to "other people." And there are those who mistakenly assume that Medicare will cover everything once they reach the age of 65. The reality is that Medicare does not cover … [Read more...] about Medicaid: What Can Healthy Spouse Retain?
Tax-Free Tuition Gifts & Your Estate Plan
People who are in a position to give life-changing amounts of money to their loved ones after they pass away face a couple of different challenges. For one, there is the matter of the estate tax. At the present time the estate tax exclusion is $5 million and the rate of the tax is 35%, so any portion of your estate that exceeds $5 million will be shaved down by over a third if you don't take action to prevent it. If this wasn't bad enough, the tax relief act that was passed at … [Read more...] about Tax-Free Tuition Gifts & Your Estate Plan
A CRUT May Fit Into Your Estate Plan
People who are getting serious about preparing their assets for eventual distribution to their loved ones upon their passing often times sit back and contemplate their overall legacies. You can go through a period of very profound soul-searching during the latter stages of your life, and you may find that you would like to punctuate your legacy with some charitable giving. There are a number of estate planning vehicles that enable people to satisfy their philanthropic urges, and many times … [Read more...] about A CRUT May Fit Into Your Estate Plan
Medicare, Medicaid, & Your Retirement
Are you retiring sometime within the next 20 years? If you can answer this question yes, you are certainly among the many. These are very interesting times in elder law circles because of the fact that so many people are reaching retirement age at the same time. It is hard to wrap your head around this statistic but there are 10,000 people applying for Social Security every day right now and this is expected to continue for the next two decades. With so many people … [Read more...] about Medicare, Medicaid, & Your Retirement
The Basic Estate Plan
Depending on the size and scope of your assets and the specific nature of your wishes it may be necessary to implement a combination of estate planning instruments to enable the optimal transfer of assets. However, when you engage the services of an experienced estate planning attorney, he or she can greatly simplify the matter and explain your options to you in an understandable manner. This having been stated a lot of people are only going to need a very basic estate plan. … [Read more...] about The Basic Estate Plan
Adding A Dimension To Your Estate Plan
Everyone has heard of the last will, which is the most common vehicle of asset transfer used in the field of estate planning. It is interesting to note that in the past this document was comprised of two different components and generally termed the "last will and testament." When it was broken down in this manner, the will was used to transfer real property and the testament was the portion of the document that was devoted to the transfer of personal property. During … [Read more...] about Adding A Dimension To Your Estate Plan
Estate Tax Savings, Asset Protection With GSTs
When people try to make the case that the estate tax should be permanently repealed one major prong of their argument is the fact that it is an exercise in taxing monies that have already been taxed. When you look at it objectively, any assets that you have been able to accumulate were acquired with the money that you had left over after paying income and payroll tax. And in addition to this you paid all kinds of additional taxes at every turn throughout your life, from property tax … [Read more...] about Estate Tax Savings, Asset Protection With GSTs
Estate Tax: Not Just Applicable To The Wealthy
There is a common misconception out there that can get you into some vulnerable territory when you are planning your estate. Some people think that the estate tax is only levied against "the wealthy," but of course that is going to depend on your definition of wealthy. Due to the enactment of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, the estate tax exclusion is $5 million at the present time. This means that only the portion of your … [Read more...] about Estate Tax: Not Just Applicable To The Wealthy
Veterans Benefit Can Defray Long-Term Care Costs
When you are standing in the present attempting to prepare yourself for a time that is well off into the future you have to make projections. This makes retirement planning and budgeting for the twilight years that will precede your passing very challenging because no one has a crystal ball and there are always going to be a lot of unknowns. But there are two things that are necessary along the way if you want to do everything possible to be prepared. For one, you need to keep … [Read more...] about Veterans Benefit Can Defray Long-Term Care Costs
