What Happens to Debt After You Pass?
How Debt Is Handled After a Person Passes More than 70% of Americans will die with some outstanding debt, according to the credit bureau Experian. For those with mortgages, the average amount of debt was more than $60,000 in 2016. Estate planning litigation lawyers, therefore, often have to tackle the challenges of...
How to Create an Estate Plan That Handles Real Estate Appropriately
Advice for Handling Real Estate During Estate Planning Real estate is one of the most common items bequeathed in a will, but it is not quite as simple as you might think. According to property estate planning lawyers, you need to consider several important factors before deciding how to handle real estate. Consider...
Legal Requirements for Removing a Fiduciary
Legal Course of Action for Removing a Fiduciary When a grantor does their estate planning, they carefully choose the person or people who they trust to administer their final wishes. As such, the court takes allegations of impropriety very seriously, and it is not an easy task to remove a fiduciary from their...
Is It Possible to Create an Estate Plan That Won’t Disappoint Heirs?
How to Keep Estate Planning From Causing Family Arguments Each year, roughly 3% of wills are contested due to disagreements among potential heirs. It can be quite tricky to create an estate plan that does not upset at least one person. Here are some things you can do to reduce disappointment among all your heirs. Be...
Estate Planning Transfers Wealth, Reduces Estate and Property Taxes
Complex Estate Planning Benefits You and Your Beneficiaries Complex estate planning ensures that your wealth, assets, and small business will be transferred smoothly to your designated beneficiaries after your death. It took you a lifetime to acquire your properties, savings, pension, and 401k retirement funds, so...
What Do You Do If a Parent Dies Without a Will?
What Happens If a Parent Dies Without a Will? About 14% of individuals younger than 30 have a will, and 68% of Americans aged 65 and older have a will. What happens when someone dies without a will, and why is this document important? Here are some of the most important things you should know. What Is the Term for...
4 Tips on How to Choose the Right Conservator for Your Assets
Choosing the Right Conservator for Your Assets A conservator manages and makes decisions on your behalf when you are incapacitated. They assume the responsibility of managing your estate. Therefore, a conservator is legally authorized to make financial decisions regarding your assets. What to Consider When Choosing a...
How a Medicaid Trust Preserves Your Assets
Getting Nursing Home Care While Preserving Your Family's Inheritance The cost of a semiprivate room in a nursing home has shot past $90,000 per year, placing a significant burden on families and threatening inheritances. Families end up needing Medicaid assistance so their loved ones can have long-term care. Working...
Determining Property Valuations During Estate Administration
Property Valuation Strategies for Estate Administrators The biggest investment most people make during their lifetimes is a home, and it is the largest asset they leave behind after their passing. Given the volatility of the real estate market, a current property valuation is essential in settling the estate, yet...
Avoiding COVID When Doing Estate Planning
Navigating COVID-19 Concerns While Managing Estate Planning When it comes to the reality of COVID-19, we now have to address many different "what if" situations that were previously unheard of. While most of us are fortunate to have never actually gone through a pandemic of this magnitude before, it has definitely...