Estate Planning

November 16, 2016

Making Your Estate Plan Your Own

Your estate plan is a way for you to make very important decisions regarding the future of your personal property, financial holdings and legacy. A proper estate plan is truly a gift. It provides peace of mind to the owner of the estate and grants family, friends, and other heirs a little piece to remember them by.

A Personal Touch

While the bulk of estate planning is comprised of official legal documents, these formalities may not be enough to convey your thoughts and wishes. Many people wish to include a letter of instruction along with their legal documents. This letter has your wishes in your own words.

November 11, 2016

Inheriting IRAs: A Legacy Full of Potential Pitfalls

by Ettinger Law Firm

If you inherit an individual retirement account, or IRA, there are a few key rules you should be aware of in order to avoid potential legal, financial, and tax issues. Failure to do so could result in a smaller legacy left behind and a headache for your beneficiaries.

Never Commingle Inherited IRAs with Non-Inherited IRAs

Inherited IRAs are separate financial accounts than IRAs or retirement accounts you may own and contribute to for yourself. You cannot commingle the funds from your IRAs and inherited IRAs. If you inherit multiple accounts from the same person such as your father, you can combine those accounts into a single IRA. Assets inherited from different individuals, such as your mother and father, you cannot combine those accounts. It is also important to note that you cannot combine inherited accounts of different types, such as your father’s traditional IRA and his Roth IRA.

November 9, 2016

What’s In a Name: Choosing a Name for Your Trust

by Ettinger Law Firm

A Living Trust is an estate planning vehicle that helps you avoid probate by transferring property to the people and charities of your choice. The assets are held in the trust’s name and not in the name of the individual. For this reason, it is important to appropriately name the trust.

The Importance of a Name

Trust names are important to consider because in order for a trust to legally hold the assets or property, the trust has to be identifiable by its formal name. This name must be distinct and separate from your name.

November 4, 2016

Female Focused Estate Planning: Long-Term Care

by Ettinger Law Firm

While everyone needs an estate plan, demographics show that women in particular should take steps to address the matter.

Living Longer & Needing Care

On average, women live five years longer than men. This means women have to face a few realities: (1) they are more likely to require long-term care, and (2) will require care for a longer period of time than their male counterparts.

November 2, 2016

Estate Planning for the Single & Childless

by Ettinger Law Firm

Estate planning for families is important. It allows a person to plan for the care and wellbeing of their family members and loved ones long after they have passed. What about people who do not have families to consider? More and more people are staying unmarried; according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 45% of adults were unmarried in 2012. Many adults are also childless, either voluntarily or involuntarily. These lifestyle choices do not, however, mean that estate planning is any less necessary.

Planning for Your Self

Estate planning isn’t just about planning for the distribution of your assets after your passing. It is also the only way to ensure that your wishes are carried out when it comes to medical care, end of life procedures, and funeral plans.

October 31, 2016

Estate Planning & Financially Dependent Adult Children

by Ettinger Law Firm

According to the Pew Research Center, more Americans age 18-34 are living with their parents than in any other living situation. Over 32% of people in that age group live in their parents’ house which leads to an interesting estate planning dilemma for the parents.

While some adults who live with their parents are financially independent providing for their own daily living expenses and even paying rent, many living at home are in some way, shape or form financially dependent on their parents. This dependence can make estate planning even more important.

Discuss Your Plan

October 28, 2016

Female Focused Estate Planning: Distributing Assets

by Ettinger Law Firm

Estate planning is vital for all people wishing to have control over the distribution of their assets following their death. Women, in particular, should take time to plan their estates. In the U.S., women control nearly 40% of the nation’s investible assets and nearly half of those assets are managed solely by women.

Surviving Spouses

Many women outlive their husbands by a number of years. Outliving your partner tends to mean that you inherit their estate. Most spouses will be sole beneficiaries of each other’s’ estates. This means that the surviving spouse will be in full control over the final disposition of the assets. If your spouse didn’t make plans and you are aware of special instructions or requests they would have wanted, it is your job to make those plans now. For instance: if your spouse had children prior to your marriage and wanted them to have an inheritance but didn’t plan, it is now up to you to decide whether or not to include those wishes in your own estate plan.

October 26, 2016

Female Focused Estate Planning: Parental Plans

by Ettinger Law Firm

Many single mothers often overlook estate planning. It can be easy to put off these important decisions. Life is busy and making plans for your demise is something that no one wants to make time for. Well laid estate plans are the greatest possible gift you can leave your family.

Guardians

According to the U.S. Census Department, 81.7 percent of custodial parents are mothers. For single mothers, planning for the care of their children is one of the primary concerns of their estate plan. While no mother wants to even consider what will happen to their children if they aren’t around to raise them, not having control over that decision is even more alarming.

October 24, 2016

Back to Basics: How to Include Health Care in Your Estate Plan

by Ettinger Law Firm

For people who reach age 65, the odds of needing long-term care benefits during their lifetime are nearly 70 percent. People are living longer and in turn needing care in their old age. On average men require 2.2 years worth of care and women require 3.7 years. Preparing for this level of care and any other type of medical care you may receive requires forethought and careful planning.

Appointing a Health Care Agent

We’ve previously discussed in this blog New York’s Family Health Care Decisions Act and the appointment of a patient’s family member or close friend to act as a surrogate decision maker for a patient who has become incapacitated. This act allows close relatives to make decisions even if the patient had never given them decision making power.

October 21, 2016

Back To Basics: Steps To Take Following The Death Of A Loved One

by Ettinger Law Firm

The passing of a loved one is not easy. The closer you were to the deceased the bigger a toll that it takes on you mentally and emotionally. You may experience anger, frustration, and numbness as you seek to process the passing. As you begin to contemplate what you must do next, you experience a feeling of being overwhelmed with facing the unexpected. All of these feelings are a part of the normal process of grieving and it is typical for a person responsible for handling the deceased’s estate to feel overwhelmed. Thinking ahead of time and knowing what to expect can reduce these feelings and help make the overall process go more smoothly.

Beyond the Funeral Arrangements

Many people are already familiar with arranging a person’s funeral, burial or cremation. After you have made arrangements for a funeral service, a viewing, the burial, cremation or spreading of the ashes, there are still a number of actions that must be completed to wrap up the deceased’s affairs. It is of the utmost importance that you contact all relevant people and organizations that need to know of the deceased’s death.