Avoiding federal gift and estate taxes is a common estate planning goal. To successfully decrease your estate’s exposure to taxes you need to understand current tax laws and incorporate those laws into your overall asset protection strategies within your estate plan. With that in mind, the Indianapolis estate planning attorneys at Frank & Kraft explain what happens to your estate assets if you die intestate in Indiana. Federal Gift and Estate Taxes For anyone who hopes to pass down … [Read more...] about Updated Federal Gift and Estate Tax Figures for 2023
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Why Estate Planning Is Important for Multi-National Couples
Over the last several decades, national borders have all but disappeared, leading to a dramatic increase in cross-border marriages in the United States. In fact, the United States Census Bureau reports that one in five marriages in the U.S. today includes a spouse born outside the U.S. Of those marriages, about 60 percent of the foreign-born spouses have become naturalized citizens, leaving the remaining 40 percent as non-citizens. If you are married to a non-citizen, the Indianapolis estate … [Read more...] about Why Estate Planning Is Important for Multi-National Couples
When Do I Need to Update a Trust Agreement?
Trust agreements are commonly found in a comprehensive estate plan. If you have established a trust agreement, you may need to update that agreement from time to time to ensure that the trust functions as intended. To help you keep your trust up to date, the Indianapolis trust attorneys at Frank & Kraft explain when you need to update a trust agreement. Contact Indianapolis Trust Attorneys For more information, please join us for an upcoming FREE seminar. If you have additional … [Read more...] about When Do I Need to Update a Trust Agreement?
Understanding Beneficiaries and Heirs
Estate planning can be an intimidating process for the average person. One reason for this is that estate planning includes concepts and legal jargon with which the average person is unfamiliar. For example, the words “beneficiaries” and “heirs” are often used interchangeably when, in fact, they are not the same thing. The Indianapolis estate planning attorneys at Frank & Kraft help you understand the relationship between your beneficiaries and heirs. Beneficiaries and Heirs It may … [Read more...] about Understanding Beneficiaries and Heirs
Under a General Power of Attorney, Are There Limits to an Agent’s Power?
A power of attorney is one of the most used estate planning tools. At some point in your life, you will likely execute a Power of Attorney and/or be named as an Agent under someone else’s Power of Attorney. Despite how common these documents are, several misconceptions remain about the power granted when you execute a Power of Attorney. To help clear some of those up, the Indianapolis estate planning attorneys at Frank & Kraft explain the limits to an Agent’s authority under a General Power … [Read more...] about Under a General Power of Attorney, Are There Limits to an Agent’s Power?
Asset Protection Planning for Seniors
While it is always important to focus on how your estate assets will be passed down to loved ones, it is equally important to incorporate tools and strategies in your estate plan that help to protect those assets while you are alive. Asset protection planning should be included in your estate plan throughout your lifetime; however, when you reach your retirement years, you may need to review and revise some of your asset protection planning tools and strategies. To help you better … [Read more...] about Asset Protection Planning for Seniors
How the SECURE Act Impacted Your Stretch IRA
Today, few employers fund pensions and Social Security retirement benefits have not kept up with the cost of living. Consequently, many of my clients contribute to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) during their working years to ensure they have sufficient assets available when they retire. If your IRA is a “stretch IRA” it is crucial to understand how the recently enacted SECURE Act impacts that account. With that in mind, the Indianapolis estate planning attorneys at Frank & Kraft … [Read more...] about How the SECURE Act Impacted Your Stretch IRA
Top 10 Estate Planning Tips
If you are like the average person, you recognize the need to have a comprehensive estate plan in place, but beyond that estate planning remains somewhat of a mystery. Estate planning encompasses much more than just deciding how your estate will be distributed after you are gone. Likewise, an estate planning attorney can do much more for you than you probably realize. The Indianapolis estate planning attorneys at Frank & Kraft explain 10 things about estate planning that you might not … [Read more...] about Top 10 Estate Planning Tips
What Does It Mean to Decant a Trust?
Like many people, you may have included a trust agreement in your overall estate plan. If that trust is an irrevocable trust, you were likely told that you cannot modify, amend, or revoke the trust. What happens though if circumstances change, and your irrevocable trust needs to be modified or amended? While it is always best to operate under the assumption that an irrevocable trust cannot be changed, there may be a way to make changes to an irrevocable trust. The Indianapolis trust … [Read more...] about What Does It Mean to Decant a Trust?
Can I Challenge My Father’s Will in Indiana?
The loss of a parent is not something for which you can ever truly prepare. If you recently lost your father, you are undoubtedly going through a period of grief and heightened emotions. Along with working through the emotional aftermath of your loss, you will also be faced with practical and legal issues relating to your father’s death. The administration of your father’s estate, for example, should begin shortly after his death. If your father left behind a Last Will and Testament, that … [Read more...] about Can I Challenge My Father’s Will in Indiana?
