With President Biden’s inauguration, many Americans are wondering if the estate and gift tax exemption will revert to a lower level, as well as what they can do to protect their assets. While there are many Houston estate planning options for individuals to shelter funds from the estate tax, SLAT…
Planning a person’s future—especially as they are aging and struggling to take care of daily tasks—is both daunting and stressful for the individual and their loved ones. Long-term care is a type of service that individuals often need if they cannot care for themselves, either due to illness, disability, or…
While individuals often think about who would receive their assets when they die, they do not always think about the medical care they want if they cannot speak for themselves. This is a critical aspect in the Houston estate planning process, called an advanced health care directive. An advanced health…
For individuals who own a company, passing the business to another individual may not be at the forefront of their mind; but it should be. Succession planning involves creating a plan for another individual to either own or run the business after the person retires, becomes disabled, or dies. This…
The firearm industry is heavily regulated, and a mistake during the ownership transfer of a firearm can become a felony. A gun trust can prevent these errors from occurring. But because gun trusts are not well-known, many people have questions about what a gun trust really is, and if they…
There are unique challenges that families with adopted children face; however, most of these families do not know that estate planning is one of them. A Houston estate plan is essential for all people, but especially for families with adopted children because of the different laws they are subjected to.…
At the beginning of every new year people make resolutions they hope to accomplish over the next twelve months. While the most common resolutions involve things such as exercising more and being kinder to others, resolutions about estate planning should also be at the top of this list. Because there…
Thinking about death can be extremely upsetting. People do not want to imagine their loved ones coping without them or having to handle their affairs after they have passed. However, some of these worries can be avoided. Older Texans can help their heirs before they die by keeping their affairs…
When people start to think about the Houston estate planning process, they often think about doing it themselves. Either because of cost or other reasons, they believe this to be a better option than hiring an estate planning attorney. These estate plans, nicknamed DIY estate plans, are often riddled with…
Most individuals have heard of a power of attorney but are unaware of what a power of attorney actually is. In short, a power of attorney gives another person the ability to act on another’s behalf, either for a temporary or permanent amount of time. There are different types of…