When you hear the phrase “trust-fund kids,” you might assume you need to be rich to use a trust. Yet, trusts can help anyone when estate planning, regardless of how much money you have in the bank. Trusts can help you protect your assets. You, the settlor, put assets...
What is the one critical thing about yourself that has improved since your first marriage? You are smarter than you were the first time you got married. You have probably learned much about what to do and what not to do in a marriage. Many Californians considering...
Estate planning traditionally focused on physical assets, such as your home, and financial assets, such as investments, retirement plans and money in the bank. All of those remain as important as ever. Yet, you probably realize that a lot of the things you own are...
After you go through different events in your life, you may find that you no longer want to have certain people be heirs to your estate. For example, if you separate from your spouse and get a divorce, you may want to remove them from your estate plan or take...
An estate plan isn’t an immutable document that is created, then stashed away unchanged -- perhaps for years or even decades -- until your death. It needs to be periodically updated as circumstances warrant, especially if your life changes, either in anticipated or...
Writing a last will often requires a bit of time and emotional investment. When someone has already taken that step, they may act as though they don't have to worry about their legacy or their dependents anymore. However, the truth is that the average estate plan will...
One of the hardest parts of creating an estate plan is dealing with sentimental items. There is just so much more to consider. With financial assets, it may be largely academic. You want to split your money evenly between two heirs, for instance, so you just have to...
When doing your estate planning, you need to consider future medical issues and the legal powers that you give to your heirs or other trusted family members. Don’t assume that estate planning is only for passing on assets or that it only kicks in after you pass away. ...
Once upon a time, trusts were mostly for the very well-to-do, but that’s changed. The older generations are learning how to pass their wealth to their heirs as securely as possible -- and that often means planning ahead for potential problems. One of those problems...
As part of your estate plan, one thing to consider is if you will need Medicaid in the future and how you should plan for that need. Medicaid has specific terms and financial requirements. It is considered a "needs-based" benefit, so there are limits on how much money...