Houston Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney Blog

What Single Parents Need to Know About Estate Planning

Published on: June 12, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Estate planning requires making some of the most important decisions a parent can make for their child’s well-being.

Single parents need to plan in advance for what will happen to their children, whether they are minors or adults. That includes preparing for the parent’s incapacity, as much as it does for their passing.

Talk to a qualified estate planning attorney and let him or her know your overall perspective about your children, and what you see as their capabilities and limitations. This information can frequently determine whether you restrict their access to funds and how long those limitations should be in place, in the event you’re no longer around.

Could Aretha’s Handwritten Wills Be Valid?

Published on: June 10, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Despite early reports that she had no will, it seems the Queen of Soul spent a fair amount of time creating three wills to provide for her four sons and leaving behind some strong opinions of the people in her circles. She just didn’t share those wills with her attorney.

When Aretha Franklin died of pancreatic cancer last August, it seemed that she had joined the ranks of many celebrities who never created their wills or thought much about what they wanted their legacy to be.

The Detroit News’s recent article, “Handwritten wills found in Aretha Franklin home favor her four sons” reports that three handwritten wills have been discovered in one of her homes.

Finished Your Will? Your Estate Plan’s Not Done Yet

Published on: June 7, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Asset titling is the sticking point, where many estate plans fail. The best plan can be undone, if assets are not retitled or accounts are not funded.

Retitling assets means just that—changing the name of the asset, whether it’s a deed to a home or a name of an insurance policy. If assets are not retitled to conform to the estate plan, they won’t be protected or won’t be distributed as you and your estate attorney had planned.

Forbes’ recent article, “For Estate Plan To Work As Intended, Assets Must Be Properly Titled” notes that with the exception of the choice of potential guardians for children, the most important function of a will is to make certain that the transfer of assets to beneficiaries is the way you intended.

Should a Reverse Mortgage Be Part of My Retirement Plan?

Published on: June 5, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

If you’ve got a fair amount of equity in your home and no other way to cover a healthcare cost or if the bills are coming in faster than your retirement accounts can manage, it might be time to consider a reverse mortgage.

For retirees in a financial tight spot, a home equity line of credit or borrowing against an existing home equity line of credit can provide a short-term solution. If you are at least 62 with a home that is not heavily mortgaged, a reverse mortgage is another option.

A revere mortgage gives you tax-free cash. No repayments are due, until you die or move out of the house.

What’s the Difference Between a Prenup and a Postnup?

Published on: June 3, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Whether you and your spouse have a pre or post nuptial agreement, they are a good way to make divorce or death a little less overwhelming.

If you are wealthy, expect an inheritance or have been married before and have children from a prior marriage, you may want to consider a prenup or a postnup as a useful planning tool. An article from Investopedia, “Prenup vs. Postnup: How Are They Different?” explains why these documents are important.

A prenuptial, made before the marriage occurs, or a postnuptial, made after you’ve said your wedding vows, serves to protect both parties from the emotions (and some of the drama), if the marriage should hit the skids or when one of the couple dies.

Special Needs Planning and ABLE Accounts

Published on: May 24, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

How the “Achieving a Better Life Experience” Act, known as ABLE, provides a mechanism to create a tax-advantaged savings tool for individuals with disabilities and their families.

The benefits for income, health care, food and housing for disabled Americans are awarded based on a resource test, so that individuals who seek benefits are typically limited to have no more than $2,000 in savings or assets. This includes eligibility for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), SNAP and Medicaid.

In 2014, Congress passed legislation allowing people with disabilities to establish an account, similar to a special needs trust and with some similarities to a 529 college savings account, to accumulate funds to pay for qualified disability expenses. The legislation was named the Achieving a Better Life Experience Act (ABLE).

6 Common Estate Planning Mistakes To Easily Avoid

Published on: May 23, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

This grim topic deserves your attention. If you haven’t made plans for what will happen after you die, your loved ones will have to pick up the pieces.

Here’s the nice part about this serious subject: once you have created an estate plan, you will have a clearer understanding of what the future will hold for your heirs. You’ll know that you did the right thing, and that you didn’t just leave the ones you love to clean up a mess. That’s just one reason to have an estate plan.

If you need more reasons, here’s what happens if you don’t have a plan, as recently outlined in The San Diego Tribune’s recent article, “6 estate-planning mistakes to avoid.” Without an estate plan, everything is more stressful and expensive. Let’s look at the top six estate-planning mistakes that people need to avoid:

Should You Make Lifetime Gifts While Living?

Published on: May 22, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Some people give generously all year long, supporting local nonprofits and taking care of their family members. If that’s you, perhaps it’s time to consider taking a more strategic approach to lifetime giving.

Not everyone gives because they are looking to minimize their taxes. If you’ve reached the age and stage where you have accumulated more than enough wealth to retire on, you may enjoy being generous and seeing the impact your gifts can have on the lives of those you love, or those who are less fortunate.

WMUR’s recent article, “Money Matters: Lifetime non-charitable giving,” explains that lifetime giving means you dictate who gets your property. Remember, if you die without a will, the intestacy laws of the state will dictate who gets what. With a will, you can decide how you want your property distributed after your death. However, it’s true that even with a will, you won’t really know how the property is distributed, because a beneficiary could disclaim an inheritance. With lifetime giving, you have more control over how your assets are distributed.

“The Password Problem” and Your Digital Estate

Published on: May 21, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

With the average American owning more than 100 online accounts, we now have to address the issue of digital estate planning. It’s not as simple as gathering up the sticky notes with passwords that adorn your desk.

What would happen if you died unexpectedly and your executor needed to access your bank and investment accounts? If you’ve gone paperless for everything from bank accounts to investments to cable bills, how will they be able to gain access to your accounts? Welcome to the age of digital estate planning.

Kiplinger’s recent story, “Your Estate Plan Isn't Complete Without Fixing the Password Problem,” says that having online access to investments is a great convenience for us. We can monitor bank balances, conduct stock trades, transfer funds and many other services that not long ago required the help of another person.

Prince’s Unresolved Estate Battle Likely To Continue for Years

Published on: May 20, 2019 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

It’s been three years since music icon Prince died at his famous Paisley Park mansion, joining the ranks of many celebrities who died without an estate plan.

Prince’s estate, which includes master tapes of his recordings and a 10,000-square-foot Caribbean villa, has been estimated at $200 million. However, what it will be worth after years of battles between heirs, people claiming to be heirs, consultants and a court-appointed administrator, is anyone’s guess.

Page Six reported in its article, “Fight over Prince’s $200M estate could go on for years,” that Prince’s heirs are entrenched in a fight to rein in the estate’s administrator. They’ve spent more than $45 million in administrative expenses, according to a probate-court petition filed by Prince’s designated heirs.