Your best bet for making or changing a will, is to sit down with an experienced estate planning attorney, so that your will won’t be invalid. Mistakes in wills are not easily fixed. Having an estate plan in place and discussing your estate plan with your loved ones in advance,…
If you plan on leaving the family home to your heirs when you die, be aware of the tax liabilities that are associated with inheriting a house. This is the type of estate planning decision that requires a closer look with an estate planning attorney to evaluate the pros and…
Blending a family is not an easy task, but doing so successfully can create a new and strong family unit. Among the challenges are how to blend finances. Blended families are no longer limited to television sitcoms. The Pew Research Center reports that 41% of all Americans have at least…
Unintended consequences can occur when dividing up real property, which is often harder to distribute than investment accounts or savings accounts. Planning for real property division must take into account the different circumstances of your heirs. You may have envisioned a time in the future, when your children and grandchildren…
The moment you become a parent, you need a will. The same is true once you acquire any kind of asset that you want to give to someone after you die. It’s really that simple. The reasons why so many people don’t think they need a will fall into a…
When the greed nerve gets tapped, relationships suffer. There are things you can do now that will lessen the likelihood of family battles after you pass. Every family has its own dynamics, and some siblings that never resolve their differences, no matter how many years go by. When both parents…
Estate planning for entrepreneurs is not complete until it includes a succession plan. Individuals who create successful businesses often find it hard to consider handing over the reins. Entrepreneurs would not succeed without their ability to focus all of their energies on their business. It is not easy for this…
Conversations about money, death and dying wishes become tangled up in strong emotions surrounding these matters. A strategic approach might be helpful. Every family is different, but almost every family struggles with conversations about wills, estate planning and money. A recent article in The Chicago Tribune, “Have the estate planning…
Forget to make these changes and your heirs may never forgive you. Forget to align these documents, and your estate planning attorney will never forget you. Once the process of legally ending your marriage begins, you will need to make sure that your own interests are protected and that includes…
You know you need life insurance to protect your loved ones. But do you know that having a will is equally important to protect against risks? Without a will, your family faces a number of potential financial disasters. If you think you don’t need a will because you aren’t wealthy…