Who Should I Choose to Be Successor Trustee?
When you create a living trust, you must name a successor trustee to take over for you if you are unable to act due to incapacity or death. It is crucial that this decision be given careful consideration and that...
What You Should Know about Life Insurance Settlements
Though many people are familiar with life insurance policies and have a general understanding of how they work, the process of selling a life insurance policy to a third party may be less commonly understood. When an insured party sells...
How to Talk to Mom and Dad about Creating an Estate Plan
Conversations about death and dying are rarely fun. Most people avoid them because they invoke feelings about our inevitable demise. Broaching this subject can be particularly difficult for parents and their adult children. Adult children may avoid bringing up the...
Wills vs. Trusts: A Quick & Simple Reference Guide
Confused about the differences between a will and a trust? If so, you are not alone. While it is always wise to contact experts like us, it is also important to understand the basics. Here is a quick and simple...
Wills, Trusts & Dying Intestate: How They Differ
Most people understand that having some sort of an estate plan is a good thing. However, many of us do not take the first steps to get that estate plan in place because we do not understand the nuances between...
You Inherited a Retirement Account: Now What?
The result is that Americans have gradually amassed huge amounts of wealth in these types of qualified plans. It is increasingly common for an IRA or 401k to be the highest value item of property that an American owns. For...
Handling the Legal Affairs of a Missing Person
Approximately 600,000 people go missing in the United States each year.[1] The loved ones who are left behind must carry not only heavy emotional burdens but significant practical burdens too. People who go missing often leave behind real estate and...
Five Mistakes Successor Trustees Make (and How to Prevent Them)
When establishing a trust, you must give serious thought to who you choose as your successor trustee—the person who will manage, invest, and hand out the trust’s accounts and property once you are no longer able to do so. This...
Reviewing Your Accounts and Property upon the Death of a Loved One
How your accounts are owned makes a big difference in estate planning. The main objective is usually to ensure that no accounts and property are in only your name when you die. Otherwise, they will be subject to probate, a...
Reviewing Your Estate Plan after the Death of a Loved One
The death of a loved one is never easy. Regardless of your relationship with the deceased (blood relative, life partner, or close friend), you need space and time to process and grieve your loss. Once you have had time to...