Life insurance can help heirs avoid having to incur expenses like estate taxes, funeral costs and similar expenses. However, it also gives heirs breathing room, so they can make the best use of other assets. Here is an example of how life insurance should work. A father, Howie, dies and…
Live long enough, and you learn that life can change in a heartbeat. Young adults don’t always know this, but they need to have an estate plan as much as older people. Whether you are a Baby Boomer or a Millennial, you need to have an estate plan. With the…
Out-of-date beneficiary designations could completely undo your entire estate plan. It happens often, since people often neglect these ‘fine print’ details. We hope that you have a will to ensure that your assets are distributed according to your wishes after you pass. However, if you are like most Americans, many…
Remember that estate planning is not just for the wealthy, and now that the federal exemption is so high, not just for the billionaires either. Estate planning is also much more than a will. Your estate plan has a lot of work to do for you, both while you are…
To make sure that your wishes are carried out, you’ll have to do your homework. Make sure that you cover these most important documents. The last thing you want to do, is leave a bureaucratic mess for your loved ones when you die. Not only will it cause the family…
Life insurance can be useful in paying off debt, covering funeral costs and serving as a useful resource so that estate proceeds or any one person’s savings don’t have to be tapped. Life insurance may be the least sexy part of the transition from one farming generation to another, but…
Everyone’s needs are different. For most people, one large policy is enough. However, what if your life is not like everyone else’s? How do you know how much coverage you need? Most people never really think about adding more life insurance, once they buy a policy. They figure they have…
Without the security of a spouse’s income, single parents must balance their children’s needs with their own retirement savings goals. Single parents who have to say no to their children over and over again, struggle with wanting to say yes when money is tight and there’s no room in the…
We insure our homes, our cars and even our ability to work. We also buy life insurance, which could be the most important insurance policy you own and not just for when you have passed away. People typically think of life insurance as a means of paying final expenses, such…
The rules for IRA distributions can be complicated. Unforeseen circumstances can make things even more complex. Understand the rules, so the money goes where you want it to. What happens if you designate each of your two adult children as 50/50 beneficiaries of your IRA, and then one of them…