As attorneys, people ask us why they can’t just download a will from the internet, add the children to their bank account, and do a transfer-on-death land deed, for an estate plan. It’s just not a good idea. For the…
You are likely to be asked to be power of attorney for an elderly or sick loved one at some point in your life. Your person may be planning for when they might become unable to take care of their…
Imagine this scenario, an unwed middle-aged lady, Sandy, being the sole caretaker for her 85-year-old mother. Sandy still worked full time and would help her mom in the evenings and weekends. Unfortunately, Sandy was in a serious car accident and…
There are currently more than 51 million Americans that are 65 or older, and this number is continually growing due to medical and technological developments. The expanding needs of the US aging population are contributing to an increase in federal…
Substance abuse, suffering from mental disability, or living on the streets are just some of the real-life issues people are grappling with today. Many families want to assist family members struggling like that, but families are unsure how to offer…
Thinking about facing the possibility of a deadly illness or injury is not something people like to imagine. Because of this, we rarely think about how to protect ourselves and our loved ones if the worst were to happen. However,…
The law describes estate planning as a legal document summarizing the property a person owns and how to distribute these assets when deceased. Property ownership includes individual as well as jointly owned bank accounts, stocks and bonds, retirement accounts, real…
Bankers Life Center for Secure Retirement commissioned The Blackstone Group to perform a study of how prepared baby boomers really are for retirement, and the results are troubling. According to the survey above, the bleak financial reality of this demographic is…
The federal estate tax exemption allowance seems to be at risk of being reduced, and so it may be a good idea to reevaluate your estate plan. Senate Democrats are proposing to lower the current estate tax exemption from $11.7…
As a married couple grow older, let’s use Ginny and George as an example, it is typical that they would like to leave their assets to their extended family when they pass. Unfortunately, Ginny was then diagnosed with cancer. She…