Estate Administration in Court
Probate is the method by which judicial officials, including probate judges, process a decedent’s will. While Pennsylvania probate laws may vary, the general process is quite similar across the country. Probate is the process of proving wills for decedents’. A probate judge will also oversee cases where the deceased person did not prepare a will, […]
What is a Will?
A will is a legally binding document stating who will receive your personal property upon your death and is an important part of a comprehensive estate plan. If you die without a will (intestate), the state will distribute your assets and property via state law and quite possibly at odds with your wishes. Having a […]
Estate Planning and the Impact of Tax Laws
More outwardly, commonwealth transfer strategies for estates have significant impacts due to tax law change proposals on the precipice of being enacted into law. It is too early to know what will become law, the House Ways & Means Committee tax plan draft indicates that change is coming soon. While new details emerge and changes […]
Your Estate and Special Needs Planning
Third-party special needs trusts sometimes referred to as supplemental needs trusts are estate planning tools for those parents of children with mental/physical disabilities and the elderly. This type of trust will receive assets from you or another benefactor expressly for that person with a disability. Goals include: leaving funds for your child’s or elderly family […]
Estate Planning and the Generational Wealth Transfer
How to protect your inheritable legacy so that its aggregate will exist for future generations requires careful planning. There are always generational differences of opinion as to how best to live and act in the world. Millennials and Generation Xers seem to have distinctly different priorities and politics than their older benefactors in response to […]
Special Needs Planning and What You Need to Know
Enabling the Disabled In honor of October as Disability Awareness Month, let’s look at planning for disabled people to live their best lives. Family money can be carefully managed to fit the disability-benefit rules and still provide additional perks for the disabled person to enjoy. And, though the rules can be strict, disabled people are […]
New Alzheimer’s Drug Approved by the FDA
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved a new drug under the trademark Aduhelm™ to treat Alzheimer’s disease. The drug, Aducanumab, is a therapeutic drug that clinically demonstrates a potential to delay further decline from Alzheimer’s disease and is also the first FDA approval for a drug that does more than address the […]
Don’t Wait for a Crisis to Discuss Long-Term Care With Your Parent
It is unclear whether or not your parent has a plan in place for long-term care. It is a difficult topic to broach; no one wants to talk about death and the financial realities that come with aging. Instead of having a proactive conversation early in a parent’s aging process, most families have a reactive […]
Why Every Senior Should Have a Living Trust
Unfortunately, it is fairly common that seniors fall victim to financial scams. Sadly, the elderly are often taken advantage of by strangers — and sometimes even their own family members. That’s why it’s important that planning is in place to help seniors protect themselves and their assets. As we age, it can become increasingly difficult […]
How to Include Cryptocurrency in Your Estate Planning
According to Florida Today, 46 million Americans own the well-known crypto asset, Bitcoin and the number of people owning cryptocurrency is growing steadily. Bitcoin was created in January 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto as a peer-to-peer electronic cash system. This digital or virtual currency is held secure using cryptography, making it nearly impossible to double-spend or […]