Estate Planning

Houston Families: Pass The Assets, But Don’t Drop The Ball

Published on: December 20, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

A comprehensive estate plan ensures that wills, trusts, ownership forms and beneficiary designations are in sync with your wishes. Is your plan up-to-date?

As the old adage puts it, most folks do not “plan to fail, they just fail to plan.” In this sense, leaving an inheritance behind can get a bit tricky and can take some expert guidance to do it well.

This business of leaving an inheritance was taken up by Forbes recently in an article titled “How To Inherit Wealth Without Screwing Up.” (Incidentally, it is hard to inherit wealth without screwing it up, but this piece has far more to do with the ways you can leave it behind and screw it up, in spite of the title).

Can Inherited IRAs Be Impacted By Bankruptcy in Houston?

Published on: December 19, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

While the dispute over inherited IRAs has not arisen often, it may crop up more in the future.

Does an "inherited" retirement account remain a retirement account for the intended heir? This may sound like a rhetorical question, but it is currently one before the U.S. Supreme Court in the matter of Clark et ux. V. Rameker et al.The decision could have important consequences for those who are looking to leave an IRA to their heirs – and NOT to the heir's creditors.

This issue was explored by Reuters in a recent article titled “U.S. high court to chart fate of inherited IRAs in bankruptcy.”

Responsible Wealth Transfers in Houston

Published on: December 17, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

In the end, the goal is to convert what is otherwise a fleeting inheritance into a perpetual wealth management opportunity for the family. This goal can only be accomplished through proper, coordinated planning.

Our goal of passing along wealth to the next generation is to ensure their wellbeing and happiness well after we are gone, perhaps for generations to come. Unfortunately, if the transfer is not handled responsibly, a lifetime of work can vanish in an instant.

Thankfully, with the use of some powerful legal planning now, you can structure your wealth succession to preserve and protect the family wealth. The power of the trust planning is becoming more widely known, but it is also just as widely understood.

Last-Ditch Will in Texas

Published on: December 16, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Done right, death-bed revisions may save their families income and estate taxes and prevent misunderstandings and administrative hassles. If not handled carefully, though, it can leave a will open to legal challenges that can drag on for many years …

During one's final hours, people tend to review their last wishes to make sure all will be ok in the end. They may even decide to make some last minute changes. But while it is your Last Will, deathbed revisions can create dangerous challenges to your overall estate plan if not accomplished correctly.

The Wall Street Journal considered this matter in a recent article titled “Changing a Will at the Last Minute.”

Insurance And Financial Planning Go Hand In Hand in Houston

Published on: December 13, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Discomfort with the details prevents many people from obtaining the necessary coverage.

The kinds of insurances we are “required” to buy help us with the minor bumps and scrapes in life and are sometimes easy to think about, shop for or ensure that we have adequate coverage. Auto and homeowners insurance, for example, come immediately to mind.

On the other hand, disability insurance, long-term care insurance and life insurance are another matter entirely. As USA Today points out in a recent article titled “Insurance is most ignored in financial planning,” these three insurances are all too often ignored, misunderstood and difficult to think about emotionally. Nevertheless, they are often essential.

When An Inheritance Hinders Financial Aid in Houston

Published on: December 12, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

"Kids inherit money. We don't want it."

Sometimes too much inheritance all at once is a threat to moral development, it’s true, but sometimes a gift can threaten a college education by complicating financial aid.

As parents of the college-bound understand to a dizzying degree, financial aid is a difficult calculus of have and have not. It is often an entirely necessary salvation. Unfortunately, the types of income a parent or a student of a parent receive will have dramatic influences both on the availability of financial aid and the ease with which it is attained.

Definition of Estate Planning in Houston

Published on: December 9, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Estate planning is the process of legally structuring the future disposition of current and projected assets.

Estate planning is many things. In order to present a solid definition of this particular type of planning, a recent Forbes article posed the question, “What Is Estate Planning?”

The article concludes that “Estate planning is the process of legally structuring the future disposition of current and projected assets.” The operative words in this definition of sorts are “structure” and “process.”

Planning For Your Own “Brady Bunch” in Houston

Published on: December 6, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

When Carol and Mike Brady got together on the classic TV show "The Brady Bunch," there wasn't a lot of discussion about how the couple would handle things like updating their life insurance policies to reflect their new, blended family, or covering the cost of things like braces and college tuition for their six kids.

Blended families, however loving, oftentimes have more than a few things to address when it comes to financial and estate planning. The modern day "Brady Bunch" brings about many planning obstacles.

Indeed, the challenges faced by the blended family are frequently discussed in professional financial and legal circles. In part, this is because blended families are the new normal. If your family is “blended,” then it is only prudent to consider any tips regarding common challenges you may face.

Is Your Texas Will The Final Word? Not Necessarily

Published on: December 5, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

A will may say to divide an estate equally among three children. But if a particular account is titled to pass to just one, only that beneficiary will get the account.

Your Last Will and Testament is the legal document to put your wishes in writing and get it all straight, right? Not necessarily.

The key to the disposition of your estate is how your assets are “titled” and how the beneficiaries are designated.

Confusion Over Assets For Cohabiting Couples in Houston

Published on: November 22, 2013 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Here are some potential pitfalls to keep in mind for couples who are thinking of keeping some or all of their assets separate.

When two people have lived together outside of marriage for some time, the question of who owns what can get downright confusing. Obviously, jointly owned assets can be tricky. Surprising, separately owned assets can be just as complicated.

When it comes to jointly owned assets it is not too hard to understand how problems can erupt. When it comes to separately owned assets, take a look at a recent article in The Wall Street Journal titled “Separate Assets, Joint Problems.”