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The Fiscal Cliff Deal: Things You Should Know
A recent article in Forbes discusses ten facts about the fiscal cliff deal that all Americans should be aware of. The Bush tax cuts were made permanent for most taxpayers. As to the federal estate tax, the exemption will remain at $5.12 million per person and indexed for inflation, with a tax rate increased from […]
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The Joys and Sorrows of Gift-Giving During Your Lifetime
“You can’t take it with you.” These are good words to keep in mind as we go through life, they remind us not to take ourselves too seriously, not to hold onto things we don’t need, and to be generous to those less fortunate than ourselves. Whether you’re thinking about estate planning or gift planning, […]
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Beware of Mistakes in Your Old Estate Plan
Do you already have an estate plan? Or perhaps you don’t have an estate plan per se, but over the years you’ve collected all of what you feel are the necessary documents to provide security and protection for your family and your assets after your death? Well, you may want to take a moment to […]
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Estate Planning for Your Digital Assets
We live in a digital world. With every year that passes, more and more of our lives are moving into the digital ealm. This includes friendships, networking, business and banking. Many people would now consider their Facebook password to be just as secret and sensitive as a credit card or social security number! We all […]
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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. […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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