by Christine | May 30, 2014 | Estate Law, Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA), Inherited IRAs, Trustee, Trusts |
Worried about your adult children blowing through their inheritance? Two strategies can help holders of individual retirement accounts curb an heir’s impulse to “cash out.” You may have many assets to leave behind for your heirs. However, an IRA is unique enough to be...
by Christine | May 26, 2014 | Charitable Giving, Philanthropy |
Picking the right charity can be so complicated that it makes picking stocks look easy. When you give to charity, do you ever wonder if your donation is really going where it's supposed to? Or if your gift is doing the work you intended? If you are wrestling with...
by Christine | May 23, 2014 | Elder Care, Elder Law, Medicare |
Medicare has published new rules spelling out the changes, and an education campaign aimed at healthcare providers began in January. But many healthcare providers haven't grasped it, either. As you may know, Medicare has recently undergone a big change affecting...
by Christine | May 22, 2014 | Elder Law, Estate Planning |
“Young people may be eager to marry for love, but older couples are more practical and worry about paying the bills,” says Pepper Schwartz, professor of sociology at the University of Washington. These days, more and more Americans are meeting new loves or (finally)...
by Christine | May 21, 2014 | Estate Planning |
Remember that any mistakes in your estate plan will live long after you. Follow these rules and you’ll end up with an estate plan that works well for you and your heirs. Planning for the estate is really an ongoing activity. Accordingly, estate planning is not a...
by Christine | May 20, 2014 | Estate Planning, Gift, Inheritance |
Ultimately, the decision about whether to leave your children money now or later depends entirely on your financial and family circumstances. Deciding whether or not to leave an inheritance is only part of the equation. When should you give it – now or later?...
by Christine | May 19, 2014 | Estate Planning, Inheritance, Wills |
Dividing money is easy. But who gets Mom’s tea set? When we hear about heirs fighting over an inheritance, most of us think about money as being the main issue. But money isn't everything! How you split up priceless family artifacts and other physical goods can...
by Christine | May 16, 2014 | Charitable Giving, Philanthropy |
About 50 years ago, only 5% of the total assets of America's largest 50 foundations were held by spend-downs. In 2010, that number had risen to 24%, according to Bridgespan Group in Boston. Today's charitable foundations seem to be shifting from maintenance...
by Christine | May 15, 2014 | Estate Law, Trusts |
As with estate planning for humans, creating a pet trust is designed to give owners peace of mind. To ensure that pets will be cared for in accordance with an owner’s wishes, owners should be sure to definitively detail their pet’s standard of living and nutritional...
by Christine | May 14, 2014 | Charitable Giving, Estate Planning, Philanthropy |
Today, with smaller families and more women choosing not to have children, “the dynamic has changed pretty significantly for the generation of baby boomers. The option of doing something charitably significant with their estates is a change,” he said. The New York...
