A small estate affidavit may be used in place of a formal estate proceeding (opening an estate before a judge) to collect the decedent’s (person who died) assets when the total value of the decedent’s assets are less than $100,000 and include no real estate. An affidavit must be completed which states…
Withdrawals are usually tax-free when one inherits a Roth IRA, but minimum withdrawals are required each year using the same rules as for any inherited IRA. A non-spouse beneficiary should have the account retitled as an inherited Roth IRA using this format: John Doe, Deceased (date of death) Roth IRA…
When parents set up a Third Party Special Needs Trust, it is created by and funded with the assets of the parents. The parents are considered to be the “third party”. The trust is not set up with the assets of the special needs child, and the transfer may not…
Open enrollment for Medicare runs from October 15th to December 7th this year. If you are eligible for Medicare, you are more likely than ever to be the target of Medicare related scams this year. Medicare scammers are smart and they know exactly what types of scenarios, incentives and stories…
At our office we are frequently approached by elderly clients who are considering a second marriage later in life. A new romantic relationship can mean new friends, new experiences, increased happiness and an overall better quality of life. That being said, older couples do have some important issues to consider when…
No area of our practice causes more confusion and angst for seniors and their families as the question of how to pay for nursing home care. Within that practice area, no topic causes more problems for seniors as asset protection planning. Myths abound about how to protect assets prior to…
Recent natural disasters have highlighted the need for more comprehensive emergency and evacuation plans for nursing home facilities. Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Marie each caused significant property damage, resulted in loss of life, and left many seniors stranded for days without electricity, air conditioning, sufficient access to medications and doctors,…
Gary Cohn, a White House advisor on tax-planning, uttered these words to a group of senate Democrats recently. To Cohn, his comment underscored the fact that very few of the uber wealthy pay estate taxes anyway so eliminating the tax would do very little to the revenue side of the…
Many of our clients have children or grandchildren (beneficiaries) that need protection from their own proclivities even as adults. Some of these habits include addictions, poor spending habits or just not living up to their potentials. So what is a parent or grandparent to do? Why not use an “Incentive Trust”? An Incentive…
When a Petition for Guardianship of an Adult with an Alledged Disability is filed, the Court will often times appoint a Guardian ad Litem (GAL) to conduct an investigation. The GAL is a local attorney who is responsible for representing the best interests of the Respondent in the guardianship proceeding.…