Although some couples remain unmarried to protect their estates, that strategy backfires if you end up paying estate taxes. If you choose not to marry, you and your partner need to educate yourselves on your estate planning and retirement options. If you’re married, you’re able to inherit an unlimited amount…
Articles Posted in Estate Tax
Caution: Possible Estate Planning Mistakes!
"The costliest errors are ones we make ourselves, often without realizing how much damage we're doing." "Estate planning is intertwined with the financial plan," a newsmax.com article explained, and it’s no secret that many individuals fail to prepare for retirement. When doing an estate plan, the article offers some sound…
Are Houston Boomers Neglecting Their Estate Planning?
"If you are looking at Baby Boomers, they are looking at what their cash flow will be in retirement," says Carol Kroch, managing director, wealth and philanthropic planning at Wilmington Trust in Wilmington, Del. "Can they do the things they want to do? Can they retire? Can they keep the…
Retirement Planning Mishaps Can Impact Houston Seniors
Here are a few of the most common mistakes we’ve seen seniors make in regard to their retirement planning. Sometimes knowing what NOT to do is just as important as knowing what to do. So it is with retirement planning. Physician’s Money Digest lists some of the most common mistakes…
Does Your Houston Estate Plan Need a Charitable Remainder Trust?
When Detroit businessman Dick E. Morand died in 1977, he ensured that his estate would continue giving for decades after his death via a charitable remainder trust. Morand died at the age of 87. He was founder and owner of D.E. Machinery Company and was vice president of Addy-Morand Machinery…
Retirement Planning Issues for Small Business Owners
Now is the time for small business owners to evaluate their year-end retirement planning while building a retirement budget line item for next year. A recent article in The (Great Falls MT) Prairie Star, titled “Review estate, tax and retirement planning issues now,” argues that a farm or ranch operation…
Death and Debts: What Can You Do?
Sometimes, a loved one’s estate may include debt. Do you know what to do should if you are the spouse or heir that inherits debt? If you aren’t sure what to do with a loved one’s debts after they pass – or what to tell others to do with your…
Divorcing? Re-Visit the Details of Your Houston Estate Plan
Once you're divorced you should immediately create a new estate plan — a will or revocable living trust, a healthcare power of attorney, and a living will ("pull the plug") designee. Read on for more estate planning must-do’s regarding divorce. A recent article in the The Huffington Post, titled “Divorce and…
Houston Families Can Explore Advantages of Charitable Giving
Lifetime gifts may carry considerable advantages over charitable bequests, according to Atlantic Trust, the U.S. private wealth management division of CIBC (NYSE: CM) (TSX: CM). Lifetime gifting allows you to see your donation make a difference. In addition to this giving advantage, there’s also the goals of receiving an income…
Should a Trust Last 360 Years? Several Mississippians Think So
Legislation allowing Mississippians to place their assets in a trust for up to 360 years passed the state House and is now pending before Gov. Phil Bryant. How long should a trust really last? According to the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, Mississippi’s House Judiciary Chair Mark Barker said many states…