One often overlooked estate planning tool is a simple Totten trust. Also known as payable-on-death accounts, they can add privacy to your estate plan. Below is some important information to anyone looking for nontraditional options for their comprehensive estate plan....
Putting off estate planning is very much the norm here in the United States. While all adults should put one in place as soon as they legally can, statistics show that most people do not. There are vast numbers of people in every decade of life who still do not have...
It is a good idea to update your estate plan periodically. This is especially true if you wrote it at a relatively young age. Your life circumstances are going to change, and you may need to make alterations based on marriage, divorce, a medical diagnosis, changes to...
For Californians doing their estate planning, finding the best options that fit your family's needs and unique circumstances can seem overwhelming. But that doesn’t mean you can keep putting off the inevitable. For blended families where there are children from prior...
Advance directives are legal documents that allow individuals to outline their medical treatment preferences if they cannot communicate those decisions themselves. Many families encourage aging parents to complete these directives. However, not all older adults are...
Your estate plan is the way that you can provide instructions to your loved ones for how to handle your affairs if you’re ever incapacitated or once you pass away. While creating the plan might be something you dread, you may soon realize that having to tell your...
Adults create an estate plan so their loved ones have instructions about how to handle their final affairs. Some adults assume this is a one-and-done event, but it’s critical that they realize that all estate plans must be updated periodically. Estate plans must be...
If you want to support a cause you care about, your estate plan can allow you to do so. Charitable giving through your estate is a way to create a lasting legacy. There are several ways to include a gift to charity, with trusts being one of the most flexible options....
A major task that you must handle when you’re getting an estate plan together is making sure that you have a plan for every asset. Many people focus on the larger assets, such as investments and their home, but there’s another asset that might be overlooked—bank...
Many people's first introduction to a blended family came from watching "The Brady Bunch." These days, blended families make up about half of America's households. These family dynamics have an impact on multiple areas, including daily chores, vacations, holidays and...