To the general public, a trust may seem like an advanced tool only for the wealthiest among us. But, the reality is that trusts are a foundational estate planning tool with a solid history for being highly effective in ensuring a person’s wishes are carried out. The process begins with the maker of a trust – commonly referred to as the
During the home buying process, you worked with a lot of individuals: your realtor, the seller’s realtor, the title company, the loan officer, and the home inspector. Now that you have finalized the purchase of your house, there is one more expert you need to call: your estate planning attorney. Aligning Your Ownership with Existing Estate Planning First, your attorney can
People often set up bank accounts or real estate so that they own it jointly with a spouse or other family member. The appeal of joint tenancy is that when one owner dies, the other will automatically inherit the property without it having to go through probate. Joint property is all perceived to be easy to setup since it can be
Congratulations on the purchase of your new home. Whether this is your first home or an upgrade/downsize, the purchasing of a home is a big event in your life. When these major life changes occur, it is important that you are properly prepared. Below are a few things for you to consider now that you finally have the keys to your
A 2012 study by Ohio State researcher Jay Zagorsky found that about one-third of Americans who receive an inheritance have negative savings within two years of getting their money, and of those who receive $100,000 or more, nearly one in five spend, donate or simply lose it all. If you are about to receive an inheritance, there are several steps you
The fall, generally late-October or early-November, is the time when employers send out summaries of employee benefits offered by the company and give employees the option to enroll in these benefits. These can generally include retirement plan options, health care, dental, vision, short and/or long-term disability, and life insurance coverage. Your employer may pay 100 percent of the premiums, split the
On Monday, November 19th, we’ll be hosting our first-ever Kaiser Law Group Coffee Chat from 3-6 p.m. It’s an “open office hours”-style event. We just ask that you let us know that you are planning to come by so we can expect you. I’m not a coffee drinker – more of a hot chocolate guy (no whipped cream, no marshmallows), so
Many people who put together an estate plan do so when they start a family – assuming they put an estate plan together at all during their lifetime. While putting an estate plan together is a good thing to do, many people make few updates once the plan has been created, despite other key life events happening over the years. This
If you are recently married or have been married and are acquiring additional assets, know that you have options when it comes to how the property will be titled. And, although joint tenancy seems like an easy and convenient choice, it may not work as well as you would think. What is Joint Tenancy? After getting married, it is common for
If you find yourself in the “sandwich generation” (someone who is caring for both your children as well as your parents simultaneously), you need to know whether or not your parents have put together an estate plan. While it is still your parent’s choice to make estate planning decisions, having a plan — no matter how late in life it is