If you have given some thought to who should have guardianship over your child you’ve probably realized what a tough decision it is. Picking a person that both you and your spouse can agree on is no easy matter. Here are some tips from Savvy-Parents in their article, “Six Tips for Choosing a Guardian for Your Child”:
The First Few Hours After You Pass, What Happens to Your Children?
While we all see estate planning as a long-term strategy, which it is, it also can be for short-term items as well. It is easy to focus all your energy on the aspects of your estate plan that are far reaching, like retirements savings and what will happen to your assets after your passing. Yet, what about in those moments before your strategy for the longevity of your assets kicks in? Or more importantly, if you have minor children, what will happen to them in the first few days after your passing? An article from Forbes, “What Is Micro Estate Planning And Do You Need It?” emphasizes the need to consider the short-term plan for your children.
Will Your Legacy Include a Larger Purpose?
The use of a “purpose” trust, as reported in Forbes’ recent article, “Why You Should Consider Using a ‘Purpose’ Trust for Your Legacy Plan,” centers on the idea of protecting and preserving your legacy. It exists not for the benefit of individual heirs, but also to carry out a specific purpose. There are several states whose laws now allow purpose trusts, and you must be certain that the trust exists for a “valid” purpose, according to the law’s definition.
Three common goals of legacy planning are perpetual existence; separating the principal of the legacy assets from the revenue those assets generate; and separating the management and control of the legacy assets from those who benefit economically. A purpose trust can accomplish all of these goals.
Some Suggestions to Start “The Conversation” with Aging Parents
If you are lucky enough to have your parents still living, that’s wonderful. But as they age, and particularly if one passes and the other is on their own, be watchful of their ability to perform the tasks of daily living. If they refuse any help, you need to start talking about safety and making a plan for their care.
nj.com’s recent article, “When your older parent refuses help,” says that as parents live longer, a tension can develop between the kids who want to be sure that mom and dad are safe, and the parents who want their independence.
How to Make Gifting a Part of Your Holiday Tradition
In 2017, the federal estate tax exemption is $5.49 million. A recent article from CBS Boston, “Our Families: Giving It Away,” explains that if your estate is worth more than that, gifting is a straightforward way to lower your tax exposure while allowing you to enjoy watching your heirs or favorite charities benefit from your generosity. Don’t forget another part of this estate planning strategy: in life or death, married couples have an unlimited gifting privilege called the “annual gift tax exclusion”. [Read more…]
How to Help Parents Get Estate Planning Done
There are families who understand the importance of estate planning. There are even some who use it as a tool to facilitate discussions with their adult children about what they would want to happen if they were to become incapacitated and get their children on the same page about family values and legacies.
However, as reported in The Napa Valley Register’s“Estate planning for your parents,” not all parents are open to this. Some are insecure about their lack of knowledge, and there can be fear of the cost or undue influence. In some instances, parents just don’t want to come to terms with their mortality. Whatever it is, if a parent delays or doesn’t make an estate plan, the children will potentially have stress and conflict—and have to clean up the mess. [Read more…]
Organized Information Makes Difficult Times Easier for Family Members
If you were suddenly and unexpectedly to become incapacitated, would your spouse or adult children know where to find your important papers, be able to reach your estate planning attorney and know what you wanted, if an end-of-life care decision needed to be made?
The Daily Record’s recent article, “How to organize your affairs if you are a senior citizen,” says the first step is to collect your important personal, financial, and legal information so you can arrange it in a way that will benefit you now and your family in the future. The next step is to create sets of important information and instructions concerning how you want certain things handled when you pass away or if you become incapacitated.
Before the Thanksgiving Leftovers are Gone, a Gift for Your Family
Thanksgiving brings families together to share memories and to talk turkey and football. However, one topic often overlooked during family gatherings is the more difficult conversation about family, assets, and plans for the future. CBS Boston’s “Our Families: The Important Papers,” explains how such discussions about important papers and their locations, including estate planning documents, asset lists, contact lists and more, can be a gift to those you love.
It’s a wise plan to have a responsible person in your life who can access your important papers at every age. You should also make sure that your important paperwork is organized and filed so they can find it, so they don’t have to ransack your home looking for these documents. [Read more…]
Planning for Family
The holidays and spending time with family typically go hand-in-hand. With that in mind and the holidays quickly approaching, our focus for the upcoming month is about how you can take care of your family through estate planning.
As your family grows and changes, so should your estate plan. The estate planning needs of a young family with small children are different than those for families with aging parents and adult children. Each family is unique and should have a comprehensive estate plan to account for that family’s needs and wishes. [Read more…]
Align Life Insurance Policies with Your Estate Plan to Really Take Care of Your Kids
One of the tasks following the loss of a spouse or family member is figuring out what life insurance policies were in place and contacting the insurance company or companies to find out how to file for claims. How long it takes to receive the death benefit varies, but for the most part, insurance companies try to move quickly.
A typical follow-up question: what happens if the beneficiary doesn’t know about the life insurance policy? AsKiplinger explains in recent article, “How to Speed Up a Life Insurance Payout,” the more prepared the policy holder was, the quicker you can get the payout. That’s why at Family Estate Planning Law Group, we encourage our clients to align their assets with their estate plan.