Writing your will is not a do-it-yourself project. Words are important. The words that are not in your will can be as important as those that are. That is one of the reasons you should not try to write your own will. Even pre-printed forms and computer programs can lead to problems. Take the case… Read More
In addition to acting as an expert witness and providing estate planning and administration services, I am also a mediator. I offer mediation services at my regular hourly rate (payable equally by the parties), as a (hopefully) quicker, less expensive alternative to full-fledged litigation. Here is some more information about mediation: Why not mediate trust… Read More
Did you “stop renting a room” and “buy the hotel”? Many folks have purchased timeshares – which are a form of ownership or a right to the use of property – often of resort properties. Multiple parties own a single unit, and each person is allotted a period of time, for example, one week, in… Read More
The Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 (the “Act”) became law on December 23, 2008. The Act waives 2009 Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs), 401 (k), Profit-Sharing, Money Purchase Pension, 403 (b), and certain 457 retirement plans. The law generally requires taxpayers over age 70 ½ to take a… Read More
Let’s take a boat to Bermuda Let’s take a plane to Saint Paul. Let’s take a kayak to Quincy or Nyack, Let’s get away from it all. – lyrics by Tom Adair and Matt Dennis Do you have a house at the shore? A condo in ski country? Time share in Florida? In just how… Read More
The answer seems to be, “of course.” Many of us think that Congress will do something to patch-up the estate tax before January 1, 2010 arrives and its time to “throw Momma from the train.” But maybe not. They may wait until well into 2010, maybe even October, or even later, and make the change… Read More
What, in the end, do we leave behind? Money? A house? Investments? All these are but fleeting and will come to nought. The only thing that lasts is the wisdom of a life – values, beliefs, lessons learned from life, dreams, and hopes for future generations. These things should be left to your children too… Read More
When the Roth IRA conversion law was enacted in 1997, taxpayers with adjusted gross incomes over $100,000 could not convert. No more. On January 1, 2010, every IRA owner will qualify for a Roth IRA conversion – there will be no income limitation. When a traditional IRA is converted to a Roth, all before-tax contributions… Read More
Read this article listing common misconceptions about estate planning. Hat tip to Greg Herman-Giddens at North Carolina Estate Planning Blog and author credit to Freya Shoffner.
We read a lot about Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, but what about Veterans’ Benefits? In addition to Disability Compensation for service-related disabilities, there is also a Disability Pension for non-service related disabilities. There are three levels of pension benefits: 1. Basic – Disabled Veteran unable to work 2. Housebound Disabled Veteran or surviving spouse… Read More