Revocable Living Trust

Is Your Estate Plan Working for You?

Published on: December 20, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

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 alive and for your family when you have passed. A good article that explains it all comes from Investopedia, “How to Get Your Estate Plan on Track.” There are three key objectives that your estate plan needs to do:

End-of-life health care decisions are documented in a legally binding document;

Can an Estate Plan Become a Legacy Plan?

Published on: September 25, 2018 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

The old saying that the first generation builds the business, the second generation struggles to maintain it and the third squanders everything, is sadly, statistically true. However, creating a legacy might give you better odds of success.

If you’ve been responsible and had an estate plan created, you are way ahead of most of your peers. You’ve planned for your family and your heirs with a will, powers of attorney, an advanced directive and likely created the appropriate trusts to hold life insurance policies to minimize estate taxes and protect the proceeds from creditors. You may have even done some succession planning, using family trusts and other planning vehicles. However, will this be enough for a lasting legacy?

Forbes’ recent article, “How To Turn Your Estate Plan Into A Legacy Plan,” says that perhaps you’ve heard that legacy planning is the solution to your problem. However, you are worried about the expense. If you create a legacy plan, does it mean you’ve wasted time and money? No, it doesn’t. The documents you’ve already prepared for estate planning can most likely be used and incorporated into a more effective legacy plan. Let’s look at how to turn an estate plan into a legacy plan.

Coach Dean Smith Leaves Legacy to Players Via Trust

Published on: April 14, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Legendary Coach Dean Smith's estate is making news and not for vast wealth. The North Carolina basketball coach left $200 each to almost 200 players via his revocable trust. Typically, trusts are a private matter but Coach Smith's legion of admiring basketball players shared the news via social media.

Revocable trusts are a very popular estate planning tool used by many to keep the details of an individual’s estate private. Wills, by contrast, are public documents. Coach Smith may not have intended for his gifts to be public knowledge, but his generosity is clearly treasured by his players.

Read the full story in a Bloomberg.com article, titled “Dean Smith's Generosity Got Lots of Press. His Estate Plan Deserves Some Too.”

Should An IRA Trust Be Part of Your Houston Estate Plan?

Published on: April 13, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

An IRA Trust can be a beneficial estate planning tool for families under certain conditions. However, many investors are unaware of the IRA Trust and the benefits that it may provide.

Trusts are only for the super wealthy, right? Wrong!

The Kokomo Perspective recently posted an article titled “Are You Trustworthy?” The article explains that due to all the recent rule and distribution changes to IRAs and other retirement accounts, the IRA Trust has become much more popular and effective. An IRA Trust is a special type of revocable living trust that’s designed to receive your IRA accounts for the benefit of your loved ones after you pass away. The IRA Trust offers both protection and control.

Blending Families? Estate Planning a Must for Houston Families

Published on: February 25, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Blended families without a proper estate plan for wealth transfer could run into additional obstacles not observed by traditional families.

For example, state inheritance rules, intestate laws, and conflicts in beneficiary designations could be inconsistent with the will. In addition, a disinheritance of new family members without the knowledge of the entire family can cause emotional friction between the surviving family members.

There have been some laws enacted that have changed how beneficiary designations are handled, so make sure your estate plan is in sync with your retirement accounts. Do this because those beneficiary designations generally supersede what is directed in your will.

2015: New Financial Goals for Houston Families

Published on: January 13, 2015 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

If history is a guide, this coming week nearly half of us will make resolutions seeking to improve some facet of our lives, many of which will be focused on personal finance. If one of your goals for the New Year is to get your financial life in order, here are a few key areas which should be included on your 2015 financial planning checklist.

As you begin compiling your 2015 financial goals, one of the first items on your list should be to calculate how much money you'll need in retirement. It’s one of the most significant math problems you’ll do after you finish grade school. Once you have arrived at the answer to this math problem, you need to examine if that answer will create a problem for you as you prepare for retirement.

With that target in place, pay heed to the advice in an article from Seacoastonline.com titled “Start your 2015 financial planning checklist.” Consequently, you should create a strategy that will help you achieve that goal. A savings plan is one method you can use—and take maximum advantage of any tax-deferred savings opportunities available to you along the way.

Only the Rich Need a Trust in Houston? Wrong!

Published on: December 9, 2014 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

By keeping even modest sums of money protected, trusts can ensure that your wishes for your money will be honored into the future.

A recent article by the Motley Fool,titled "5 Things You Didn't Know — but Should! — About Trusts," sheds some light on common misperceptions of trusts.

Here are a few beneficial takeaways from the article for Houston families:

Providing for Houston Heirs, Regardless of Wealth

Published on: December 2, 2014 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

“Regardless of how much wealth you have,” says Gregory Popera, a private wealth adviser with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, “having some type of estate plan and financial power of attorney are sort of the financial building blocks to make sure your assets go where you want them to go.”

Making sure your heirs are taken care of once you pass is an important goal of estate planning. And you don't have to be among the wealthy to create financial stability for your loved ones.

The Washington Post recently discussed practical strategies for financial security in an article titled "How to pass money on to your children."

Do Houston Residents Need Revocable Living Trusts?

Published on: August 1, 2014 | By McCulloch & Miller, PLLC

Every so often, a client will come in and announce that he or she needs a revocable trust. Typically the request stems from something the client has read in a book or article, or perhaps advice from a neighbor or friend. Of course, not everyone needs a revocable trust …

As revocable living trusts continue in popularity, many first-timers think that is the solution to their estate planning needs. Usually a friend or family member who has a trust will suggest it, or they may have read articles online suggesting everyone needs to have a revocable living trust. Being new to the estate planning world, they assume this is something they need too. The truth is that revocable living trusts are designed for particular estate planning situations. They are not necessary in every situation.

A recent article in Financial Planning titled “Does Your Client Need a Revocable Trust?” considered common situations that might call for a revocable living trust. The list includes: