Are Health Care Costs A Part of Your Retirement Plan?
When people do the math to determine what their financial budgetary needs will be they factor in all the usual expenses, as well as change-of-lifestyle expenses (such as a travel budget, for example) but according to this article on CNBC.com, what many people still neglect to factor into their retirement budget is health care expenses. […]
Read more The Year of Gifting
The year 2010 was the perfect year to die. The estate tax had expired and Congress could not get itself together in time to reinstate it for that year. Smart people like George Steinbrenner took advantage of the situation and departed this earth with no worries about the federal estate tax. It seems, however, that […]
Read more Breaking Down the Probate Process
Probate, quite simply, is the process by which the court determines the legal property of a person who has died, and decides to whom those assets will be distributed. It sounds like it should be simple, but somehow, unfortunately, probate is hardly ever simple. Even in the best of circumstances there are procedures that must […]
Read more How to Begin the Process of Choosing a Guardian for Your Child
Choosing a guardian for a child is one of the most difficult things a parent may ever have to do. From parenting style to living situation to your gut feeling about this or that person’s ability to love your children as well as you do—there are endless issues to consider before you make the final […]
Read more Four Steps to Creating Your Estate Plan
You’ve heard all the arguments in favor of estate planning, you know it’s the right thing to do, you want to get your planning done… you just aren’t sure how to get started. Estate planning can feel like an overwhelming endeavor when you’re presented with everything at once—the trick to getting started with your planning […]
Read more Changes in Estate Tax Law Require Regular Review of Estate Plans
The past few years have seen a number of significant changes in estate tax law; so much so that estate planners—as well as anyone with a will, trust, or estate plan themselves—have had to stay on their toes! The most significant event in recent estate tax history was the lapse of the estate tax in […]
Read more How to Protect Your Partner Even if You Choose Not to Marry
According to the U.S. Census Bureau the number of senior couples choosing to cohabitate instead of marry (or remarry) has risen significantly. Although this may seem like a shocking choice that goes against tradition, the truth is that there are quite a few reasons why senior couples might choose not to tie the knot: * […]
Read more Should Zombies Pay Estate Taxes?
How dead do you have to be before the government can tap your estate for estate taxes? Do you have to be only kind of dead, or do you have to be fully dead-dead? This is the subject of a new law review article by Adam Chodorow of the Arizona State University law school, as […]
Read more Do You Know How Much Your 401(k) Is REALLY Costing You?
Do you know how much your 401(k) is costing you? Are you sure? What most people don’t know is that many employees with “free” retirement plans through an employer actually pay a number of hidden fees. According to a recent article in the Huffington Post, “71 percent of plan participants don’t think they pay any […]
Read more Avoid the Most Common Estate Planning Mistakes
In a world where bureaucracy and taxation become more present and complex every year, it has become absolutely necessary for every family to have an estate plan. Not all estate plans are created equal, however, and it takes a little bit of research—or a conversation with the right advisors—to determine which plan will be the […]
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