Posts Tagged ‘estate planning’

Things don’t always go according to plan. On the other hand, sometimes pet owners can get a bit creative when providing for their pets. Let’s take a look now at 3 famous cases involving pet trusts and distill important lessons from them. David Harper and Red David Harper, a wealthy, reclusive bachelor in Ottawa, Canada,…

You may have been running around for weeks, getting your new college student off to school. It’s exhilarating, and your heart likely is bursting at the seams. You’re probably prouder than you can say, but you’re a little afraid, too. How can you make sure your kid is going to be safe at school, so…

Substance addiction is by no means rare, impacting as many as one in seven Americans. Because of its prevalence, navigating a loved one’s addiction is actually a relatively common topic in everyday life. But you should also consider it when working on your estate planning. Whether the addiction is alcoholism, drug abuse, or behavioral like gambling,…

As we build wealth, we naturally desire to pass that financial stability to our offspring. With the grandchildren, especially, we often share a special bond that makes us want to provide well for their future. However, that bond can actually turn into a weakness if proper precautions aren’t set in place. If you’re planning to…

Now is the perfect time to start working on an estate plan—because, as newlyweds, you may not have a list of your accounts, but you’ve effectively just done a working inventory of your possessions—as you’ve figured out how to consolidate two households into one. You’ve already been working on the new banking and shared responsibility…

As a new mother, you naturally want to ensure your new baby’s future in every way. For many new mothers, infancy is a time for celebrating new life, and making a will is the last thing on their minds. For others, the process of bringing new life into the world sparks intense feelings of wanting…

If you’re a frequent airline traveler, one of your estate planning concerns may be what will happen to your accumulated miles once you’re gone. They could be worth thousands of dollars, so you probably don’t want them to just disappear, but some airline policies say that’s exactly what will happen. The law doesn’t consider airline…

There’s an entire category of commonly-overlooked legacy to consider – digital assets. Don’t worry if you didn’t consider these assets when made your will or trust – it’s surprisingly common and, luckily, easy to correct. What are digital assets? They include: ●your photos (yes, all those selfies are a digital asset), ●files stored in the…

A will or trust contest can derail your final wishes, rapidly deplete your estate, and tear your loved ones apart.But with proper planning, you can help your family avoid a potentially disastrous will or trust contest. If you are concerned about challenges to your estate plan, consider the following: 1.  Do not attempt “do it yourself”…

Payable on death accounts, or “POD accounts” for short, have become popular for avoiding probate in the last decade or so. What is a POD Account? A POD account is a type of bank account authorized by state law which allows the account owner to designate one or more beneficiaries to receive the funds left…