Category Archives: Wills Probate
Proactive Wealth & Estate Planning Strategies You Should Consider Before 2021 Arrives
With each change in administration often comes changes to the estate tax and estate-tax exemptions, leaving many rushing to estate planning attorneys in an effort to properly protect their assets before the new laws can be implemented. Given the current ability to gift significant funds to your beneficiaries and others free of transfer tax… Read More »
Using Estate Planning to Cover a Child or Grandchild’s College Tuition
College tuition costs are escalating every day; not to mention all of the other costs that inevitably go along with them, such as funds needed to cover equipment, living expenses, school supplies, textbooks, and more. For many families with children, the thought of covering these costs is nothing short of daunting. However, many also… Read More »
Items That People Often Forget to Consider in Their Estate Plans
We previously discussed the importance of being prepared in terms of your estate planning, given the circumstances that the COVID-19 pandemic has put us in. A number of people panicked, wanting to ensure that their estate plans were in place in case anything happened, while others hoped that the pandemic would die down. Instead,… Read More »
Overcoming The Complications of Oil & Mineral Rights in Florida Estate Planning
The ownership of oil and mineral rights can significantly complicate estate planning. In Florida, those rights translate into a legal ownership of subsurface resources, and can be sectioned off from the surface property and bought, leased, or sold on their own. This has made planning for passing on those rights particularly complicated, especially in… Read More »
Long-Term Estate Medicaid Planning
As attorneys who practice estate planning here in Florida, we frequently receive questions about the connection between estate planning and access to benefits and programs people may need as they age, such as Medicaid. Many people have questions about how Medicaid will treat their assets in terms of determining whether they qualify for assistance,… Read More »
Why Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts Could Transfer Significant Wealth to Beneficiaries If Set Up Right Now
In the wake of the coronavirus, a number of Americans are looking into whether a Grantor Retained Annuity Trust (GRAT) makes sense for them and their estate planning in order to allow them to pass the most onto the next generation without also passing on any estate or gift taxes. The conditions surrounding the… Read More »
Do Not Underestimate the Power of Beneficiary Designations, And The Importance of Keeping Them Updated
As estate planning attorneys who regularly help clients with wills and probate here in Florida, we regularly discuss the importance of not only having a will in place, but a complete estate plan, which also includes beneficiary designations linked to important accounts such as your 401(k), IRAs, life insurance, annuities, etc. These forms are… Read More »
The Coronavirus Crisis & Estate Planning: Are You Prepared?
The coronavirus outbreak and panic that is present in Florida and the entire country has many who put off estate planning now wondering what they should do, quickly, in order to make sure that everything is in order; should the unthinkable happen, especially if they have young children. Indeed, as estate planning attorneys who… Read More »
The SECURE Act Passing Warrants Updating Your Estate Plan
Passed in late December, the SECURE Act makes a number of important changes to retirement plans that also impact estate planning. Most notably, the Act eliminates the “stretch” IRA for non-spouse beneficiaries, meaning anyone other than your spouse who is the beneficiary of your IRA can no longer only take the required minimum distributions… Read More »
Survey & Changes in Law Highlight Why Working with an Estate Planning Attorney On an Ongoing Basis Is So Important
According to a new survey conducted by TD Wealth, in addition to increasing healthcare costs and life expectancy, a rise in gray divorces – or those after age 50 – is having a significant effect on estate planning. As a result, it is becoming more and more important to constantly and proactively review these… Read More »