Estate Planning
Estate Planning is the process of determining how your wealth and assets should be transferred to the heirs of your choice: your children, grandchildren, friends, families, charitable causes, etc. and then deciding which legal tools and structures to use to best meet your estate planning goals.
Estate planning is not simply reducing or eliminating taxes and avoiding probate. Only after establishing how you want your estate’s assets to be distributed should you consider ways to reduce taxes and avoid probate. From there, good estate plans deal with a host of other issues. Now, with all but a few estates exempt from the federal estate tax, those other issues are, or should be, at the forefront of estate planning.
An estate plan is to ensure that you are taken care of the rest of your life and that your wealth is transferred to the people you want to have it. A good estate plan ensures these goals are accomplished with as much efficiency and as little cost as possible. An estate plan addresses the management and distribution of an individual’s property and financial obligations after he or she dies with financial tools such as wills, revocable living trusts and power of attorney.
For a comprehensive overview of Estate Planning, please start with our article:
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How to Review Your Estate Planning Essentials
You need a complete, up-to-date estate plan now more than ever, regardless of the value of your estate. Estate Planning never was all about taxes, though people thought it was back when estate taxes clipped many estates. Because few estates will face a federal tax burden, we can focus on the real issues of estate […]
Making Smarter Estate Planning Gifts to Family Members
Giving gifts isn’t as easy as one might think. It’s not easy, that is, if you want to maximize the value and impact of your gifts. Watching every gift is the tax man, looking to take a piece of it. Even if your estate isn’t likely to be taxable, you should be looking for ways […]
When Should Children Inherit from Trusts?
Many people put their money in trusts because they know their children or grandchildren aren’t ready to directly control the wealth. The question they struggle with is when money should be released from the trust directly to the beneficiaries. Here’s a succinct summary of the factors that show a person is ready to inherit wealth. […]
How to Integrate IRAs into Estate Planning
IRAs are among the most valuable assets in many estates. The right moves can maximize the after-tax value of the IRAs for the objects of your affection. Too often, not enough thought is given to the different ways IRAs can be handled in an estate plan, so the value isn’t maximized. The IRAs don’t create […]
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Your Most Important Estate Planning Decision – Executors and Trustees – Part 2
Selecting a trustee is one of the most important decisions in Estate Planning. Last month we began a discussion and focused mostly on whether your trustee should be a professional (usually a bank or trust company) or an individual. This month we’ll discuss ways you can structure the trustee’s duties and relationships to increase the […]
Trust Fund Babies
The wealthy used to go to great lengths to set up trust funds that would provide amply for at least the next generation and often for future generations. Those family wealthy dynasties appear to be out of favor, according to this article from The Washington Post. They’re worried about spoiling their kids and not allowing […]
Making Your Most Important Estate Planning Decision – Choosing Your Trustee
The success of your Estate Planning often is determined by the choice of trustee. The importance of that choice isn’t discussed often or fully enough. Many estate plans now include one or more trusts set up for various purposes, so this is a vital issue for most people. A trust is managed and administered by […]
Why Grandparents Should Like 529 Savings Plans
Grandparents are contributing more to their grandkids’ educations than in the past, and the best way to do this is through a section 529 college savings plan. Even when it isn’t clear a grandchild will attend college, 529 savings plans are good estate and financial planning tools to implement. A number of factors cause grandparents […]
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Estate Planning Basics
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Estate Planning for Singles
Estate Planning Forms and Documents
Estate Planning Mistakes
Estate Planning Strategies
Estate Tax
Executors and Trustees
Family Limited Partnerships
Gifts and Gift Giving
Grandchildren
Heirs, Beneficiaries, and Children
IRAs & Your Estate
Power of Attorney
Probate
Trusts
Wills and Estate Planning
