Houston Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney Blog

The Unexpected Threat to Estate Planning

Published on: July 19, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Neglecting to plan for family dynamics can destroy the best estate plans. Make sure to address both difficult personalities and tax liabilities. They can be equally problematic.

Saving loved ones from a large tax bill and maximizing the transfer of wealth across generations is great, but your estate plan needs to do more than that. The plan must consider the dynamics of your family, how they may treat each other after you pass and what can be done to protect them from each other.

CNBC’s recent article, “This threat could devour thousands of dollars from your estate,” notes that even families that look like they're perfect, are not. Perfection doesn't exist. When families fail to address these types of issues in their estate plans, it can create conflict between beneficiaries.

Teach Your Children Early About Retirement Planning

Published on: July 17, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Most young adults are not thinking about retirement when they get their first jobs, but starting early, even if on a very small scale, can make a big difference.

When you are working to pay off student loans and trying to save enough to get a place of your own, retirement takes a backseat, says The Milwaukee Community Journal, “How parents can help their kids with retirement.” About 66% of millennials haven’t set aside any money for retirement, according to a report from the National Institute on Retirement Security. However, parents can counsel their young adult children on how and why to start a retirement plan now, before it gets to be an issue. Many workers early in their careers think retirement isn’t worth considering because it’s so far off, and they have other obligations. But getting a late start is a big mistake, because they’re missing out on years of compounding returns.

Here are five tips parents can give their young adult children to help them to begin planning for retirement:

How Singles Can Address Estate, Financial and Emergency Planning

Published on: July 16, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Not having a spouse makes it more important for singles to plan to protect themselves from a legal and financial standpoint.

Everyone should have a plan in place for incapacity, affirms fox5atlanta.com in a recent article, “Estate, emergency planning for single people.” This is especially true for singles. While married couples can usually rely on each other, or their adult children, in case of emergency, what happens to singles who don’t have family members? You need a backup plan and a backup person.

In many instances, singles don’t have a backup plan. If you are young and single, then you typically aren’t thinking about a worst-case scenario at all.

A Partial Checklist for Your Will

Published on: July 13, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Having a will prepared is a gift of kindness to your loved ones. They will appreciate the effort to care for them, after you’ve passed on.

If you need another reason to have a will prepared, consider the potential for conflict among loved ones who will have to guess about what your wishes were during a very difficult time. You can spare them that distress, by preparing your will and estate plan in advance.

US News & World Report’s article, “10 Steps to Writing a Will,” says that if you've been procrastinating on completing the task, here's your opportunity to cross it off your list. You can get going with these simple steps.

Blended Families Need to Blend Estate Planning Too

Published on: July 5, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Estate plans are as individual as the families that they are created for. Blended families need estate plans that address their own dynamics, including the resources and children that each spouse brings to the new family.

Blended families who marry, when children are young, are different from those who marry after their children are grown and have established their own families. Without years of living together as step-siblings, the dynamics may be considerably different.

Hometown Life’s recent article, “Blended marriages take careful estate planning,” discusses what happens when second marrieds combine their finances and must determine how to divide their estate. Their big question centers on how to address the kids, upon both of their deaths.

Bourdain’s Estate Planning, or Lack Thereof, Mirrors His Life

Published on: July 3, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Watching Anthony Bourdain travel the lesser known corners of the world and relish exotic foods and people was fascinating. However, that same approach does not work well, when it comes to more mundane matters, like estate planning.

What Anthony Bourdain’s family could have used was a disaster plan, based on his adventures that made for great television, as reported in Wealth Advisor’s recent article, “Anthony Bourdain Left Loved Ones In Limbo But The Heirs Will End Up Better Than Michael Jackson’s.” To date, there has not been any information about his estate. No attorney, advisor or agent has stepped up to convey any information to the public.

Although his life revolved around his personal participation in every venture, there’s no indication that the work can continue without him.

Have It Your Way, With a Will

Published on: July 2, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Without a will, decisions about your life, property and children will be made by someone who does not know you or your family. With a will, you have the ability to express your wishes. You need a will!

Having a will is not just for wealthy folks, who need to pass large amounts of money across generations. It is a legal document that protects you while you are living, protects minor children if you die and also distributes property after you pass. Less than half of all adults in America have an estate plan, according to a 2017 survey by Caring.com, and what’s worse, only 36% with children under the age of 18 have a will.

Inside Indiana Business’ recent article, “With a Will, It's Done Your Way,” explained that if you die without a will (i.e., intestate), the law of the state where you reside determines how your property will be distributed. For example, in Indiana, here’s what happens:

When is the Best Time to Start Taking Social Security?

Published on: July 2, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Consider these twin concepts—opportunity cost and delayed retirement credits—before you decide when to start taking Social Security.

By waiting until age 70, you’ll increase your monthly benefit, but at what cost? A recent article in Forbes, “Social Security Benefits: Getting Paid To Wait,” examines the dilemma. Money managers call it “opportunity risk:” if you take money from retirement accounts that would otherwise be invested and grow, in order to delay taking Social Security, you are risking the potential for that money to grow.

Can you plan for opportunity cost? Start by looking at whether to wait to take Social Security after your “normal” retirement age, which is 66 for most people. If you wait to claim at age 70, you’ll see the largest-possible Social Security benefit. If you’re not working, you’ll probably be withdrawing money from your retirement funds, which means that those funds won’t be able to grow for a period of several years. As a result, you’ll need to weigh the opportunity cost of not having funds growing tax-deferred in your retirement accounts, against the larger Social Security benefit you will eventually get.

Selecting an Executor: Not Always Easy

Published on: May 24, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Don’t delay finalizing your estate plan, because determining who to name as your executor is difficult. Here’s some help to figure out how to make this important decision.

If there are no family members or friends with the necessary skills, your best option may be to name your attorney as the third-party executor of your will. A useful article from nj.com, “Who should be executor of your will?” explains how this works.

An executor is a person you name in your will or who is appointed by the court and is given the legal responsibility to address a deceased person's remaining financial obligations. An executor is responsible for paying debts and creditors, filing tax returns, paying taxes, and distributing the estate's assets, pursuant to the deceased person's wishes as stated in the will.

Finding the Right Assisted Living Facility for Now and the Future

Published on: May 23, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

People moving into an assisted living facility, should do a lot of research to make sure they get the quality care and the services they need. Their lives may depend on it.

Life in an assisted living facility is a welcome alternative to aging seniors who are no longer able to remain in their own homes, but don’t want or need to live in a nursing home, which often feels like living in a hospital. They can receive the services they need, while enjoying a full roster of activities and the companionship of their peers. It sounds like a good plan, and in many cases, it is.

However, Consumer Reports’ recent article, “5 Steps for Choosing the Right Assisted Living Community” says that finding the right residence can be a huge challenge.