A trust is one of the most valuable and increasingly popular estate planning tools to use a trust appropriately. It is recommended that you work with a qualified estate planning lawyer to ensure that the trust is legal, properly funded and aligned with your estate planning goals. Two primary questions will guide much of your conversation with your estate planning attorney. The first of these is who will serve as the Read More
Do I Need a Power of Attorney If My Spouse Is Showing Signs of Mental Decline?
Showing early signs of dementia or other cognitive issues might prompt you to schedule a consultation with an estate planning lawyer. Many people get advised at this stage in time to create a financial power of attorney. If these medical issues are happening to your spouse, however, you may be wondering if this is necessary. One of the most important things to remember is if a loved one is showing signs of mental Read More
Recognizing Your Residuary Estate
What happens if you don’t plan for everything in your estate? A will is the most popular estate planning tool because it allows you to determine what happens to your assets and also to name any guardians for your minor children. However, there are some reasons why certain assets may not make it into your will. These become part of what is known as your residuary estate. You may create a residuary estate Read More
Have You Planned for The Rising Costs of Health Care?
As you look to the future of your estate plan and retired years, have you considered whether you have room in your budget for a healthcare crisis? While most people hope to live long and healthy lives without a major illness or accident-related problem, it’s smart to think about your possible sources of funding should the worst happen. Most people underestimate the possibility of needing long-term care in the Read More
What Millennials And Gen Z Need To Know About Estate Planning
Everyone needs estate planning, but plenty of people skip over the importance of creating basic estate planning documents. You might think that estate planning doesn't apply to you because you're relatively young, but any number of celebrity and news stories can show you just how dangerous it can be to skip an estate plan. It is always shocking to find out when a celebrity who had significant assets didn't take any Read More
How To Avoid Arguments With Siblings When a Parent Passes Away
The loss of a parent has many implications for surviving family members, but it is all too often the case that siblings can end up in the midst of disputes with other siblings. Dividing up the assets of an estate is not always easy, and when people do not agree on the best way to do this or the interpretation of the will, this can lead to extensive and expensive legal actions. As a parent, you can do some proactive Read More
Your Stage Of Life Connects To Your Estate Planning Goals
What’s most important to you in this stage of life? That may change over time, and your estate and financial goals should change with it. What you need when you go off to or graduate from college is probably different from when you buy your first home or prepare for retirement, and it's important to remember to update your estate plan as you go. At each stage of your life and age you reach, it is important to think Read More
When To Impose Conditions On Your Estate Plan?
No matter how you approach the process of estate planning, you may have natural concerns about someone's ability or willingness to properly manage an asset. Being overly burdensome with the conditions placed on your estate plan, however, can be problematic for those who inherit from you. Striking a balance can help give you some level of control and peace of mind during your life, but also enable your beneficiaries Read More
How Private is a Trust?
Have you put together a will for your estate plan? Depending on your personal goals and the kinds of assets you have, this may not be enough for estate planning purposes. Working with a New Hampshire estate planning lawyer is one way to add some privacy to your estate and to remove the bulk of your planning from the public eye in probate court. One of the leading reasons for using a trust for estate planning or Read More
What If Your Kids Don’t Want Your Belongings?
In the estate planning process, you'll handle big picture items such as homes, retirement accounts, life insurance policy, designations and other big assets like vehicles. However, even if you want your children to inherit all of your treasured possessions, this does not always mean that your children want to receive them or will handle these assets in the way in which you intend. Treasured collections are Read More
