Some of us may enjoy games like fantasy football that allow us to assemble our own star team with the players we think will provide the most value. While fantasy football is fun to participate in, have you ever given thought to the importance of establishing your own dream team? Just like...
Category: Asset Protection
How Business Executives Can Set and Meet Their Estate Planning Goals
As a business executive, you are used to strategizing and creating goals as part of your job. But have you devoted time to strategizing and creating goals to protect yourself and your loved ones? If not, we are here to help you address some of the goals business executives often have when...
Difference Between Transfer on Death and Payable on Death Designation
Adding a payable-on-death (POD) or transfer-on-death (TOD) designation to an account allows the assets (money and property) in that account to be passed to a named beneficiary when the original account holder dies.
Like trusts, POD and TOD accounts bypass probate. They are also fast, easy, and usually free...
What Not to Include in Your Estate Planning Documents
One important purpose of estate planning is to facilitate the transfer of ownership of your money and property to your family and loved ones when you pass away. For this transfer to be as stress-free and efficient as possible, it is crucial that estate planning documents be thorough and provide the necessary...
Home Security Systems and Estate Planning
Estate planning helps bring peace of mind and a sense of security, both in our lifetime and beyond. While we cannot predict our fate, we can at least dictate how our money and property will be distributed and ensure that we provide for our loved ones.
Physical security is...
Three Things You Must Do to Protect Your Family if You Are Recently Unemployed
If you have recently lost your job, you are not alone! Inflation has skyrocketed in the United States over the past couple of years. Some smaller businesses have not been able to survive the increased expenses, putting employees out of work, while many larger companies have laid off employees to reduce their...
Investment and Distribution Trustees: Why Would I Need Both?
When creating a trust, it is common to name yourself as the initial trustee who is responsible for all aspects of administering the trust. However, when considering who will take over when you can no longer act (either because of illness or death), it is sometimes helpful to divide the responsibilities between...
Garn–St Germain Act: What You Need to Know
It is important to let your estate planning attorney know if you own real estate that is subject to a mortgage. Most mortgages include due-on-sale clauses stating that, upon the transfer of the mortgaged property, the entire amount of the debt owed on the mortgage is immediately due and payable. Under the...
Nonjudicial Settlement Agreements: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Some trusts are irrevocable as soon as they are created, which means that, in general, the trustmaker (the person who created and funded the trust) cannot terminate or modify it and take back the money or property that it holds. You may wonder why anyone would want an irrevocable trust, but irrevocable...
Why You May Still Have to Open a Legal Probate Proceeding
Probate is the legal process for recognizing the validity of a person’s will after their death and appointing the nominated decision maker. This person, also known as an executor or personal representative, administers the deceased person’s estate and ensures that their money and property are transferred to the beneficiaries specified in their...