Estate Planning

One of the benefits of making an estate plan is that you can address future medical decisions. After all, if you have a serious condition, you may be incapacitated. You could suffer a stroke, for example, that leaves you...

Many people plan ahead to pay off their debts when they pass away. If someone gets a serious medical diagnosis, for instance, they may make a concerted effort over the next few years to pay down things like a mortgage,...

Many adults are at least vaguely familiar with the idea of powers of attorney. They know that people can sign documents granting others the necessary authority to handle financial or medical matters on their behalf. An...

If you have a child with special needs, then it is even more important than ever to get your estate plan in place. They may be less able to earn an income than other children and also have greater medical costs than others...

Estate planning can involve establishing a legacy. It may also entail making plans for personal protection in an uncertain world. People sometimes draft documents that take effect while they are still alive in case they...

Creating a will helps make sure your last wishes will be carried out after you are gone. However, it is important to know that not all wills are ironclad. If someone feels upset, left out or unsatisfied over your will, it...

Creating an estate plan should be a priority for every adult. Doing this comes with several decisions, including the best way to pass assets down to beneficiaries. While it’s suitable to do this through wills in some...

Responsible people complete their estate planning so that their survivors and beneficiaries receive the inheritances their loved ones intended to leave them. You may have already done your estate planning — but there is one...

If you are unsure when to update your estate plan, or if you’ve never updated it at all, one option is to use an annual or biannual system. Every year or two, you just review the existing estate plan. You consider any...

When thinking about estate planning, it is easy to overlook the importance of creating a digital estate plan, yet this aspect is increasingly crucial in our digital age. With our lives increasingly reliant on technology,...

The primary goal of planning one’s estate is often to better ensure that assets are distributed according to one’s wishes and that loved ones are provided for in the event of incapacitation or death. But despite the...

You may have a thoughtful plan in place for your assets after you are gone, but have you considered who will be in charge of carrying out your final wishes? Choosing the executor of your will is a critical decision that...

Protecting the assets you want to pass down to your loved ones is a primary consideration when developing your estate plan. While many opt to achieve this aim using a will, there’s another option – trusts. Trusts are...

Many people say that you should avoid mixing business with friends or family. Nonetheless, there are countless successful family businesses out there – and they remain family businesses through good succession planning. As...

 People often develop a sense of entitlement toward the assets owned by others, especially those in their immediate families. For example, children generally assume that they will receive whatever property their parents own...

Estate planning should go beyond leaving assets to family members and beneficiaries. It’s not just a financial process, although that is important. Estate planning can also be used for medical and legal decisions. One way...

Chances are that, at least a few times a day, you open up various apps and visit various websites on your smartphone, tablet, laptop or another device. As more adults live numerous aspects of their life increasingly online,...

Suppose you are incapacitated by a sudden illness or a serious injury and cannot communicate effectively. Who would make medical decisions for you, and how would they know what you truly want? These are some of the...

A will is one of the many documents included in an estate plan. It’s often the first document people make. You may not fully understand how a will works and why you need one. Here’s what you should know: 1. Why is a will...

You might not want to talk to your children about your estate plan, and they might not want to hear you talk about your inevitable death. Yet, discussing your estate plan is a wise idea. As a freak accident could take you...

One of the top reasons that people give, if you ask them why they don’t yet have an estate plan, is just that they think they’re too young to make one. They know that they are legally allowed to make one, of course. Anyone...

If you’re considering or about to begin the process of divorce, you’re likely not thinking about estate planning. Nonetheless, divorce is one of those life events that warrants some changes to any existing plans you may...

Estate planning involves making significant decisions in terms of who will benefit from your savings and assets should you become incapacitated. Perhaps, more importantly than this, your estate plan can also outline...

Life can be pretty unpredictable. You can be healthy in one minute and incapacitated in the other. It could be due to a sudden illness or an accident that leaves you with limited bodily functions and unable to make...

If you’ve never made an estate plan until now, then you likely don’t know what’s all included in one. For many people, an estate plan is an itemization of assets, who’ll inherit those assets and final wishes, typically...

Getting ready for retirement often means taking a hard look at your finances and your life. It is a natural and logical time to create an estate plan if you have not already done so or make important revisions to your...

If you’re thinking about creating your estate plan, there are a variety of issues that you have to take into consideration. Sometimes, you may not be sure what to do if there’s debt and how it may affect your estate plan....

Estate planning is one of the most important legal processes that a person can partake in. It’s really something that every adult should look into.  However, the reality is that many people don’t bother with estate...

You’ve taken the important step of addressing your estate plan, but there’s still some way to go. You’ve decided to focus on your will first and build on this.  Essentially, your will should include the desires that are...

When it comes to planning for your future, part of this plan should include an estate plan. This includes official documents like a will, powers of attorney and more.  However, as you create your estate plan, you should...

Estate planning is a process many people put off until very close to retirement. It is certainly smart for those about to end their professional pursuits and to start living on a fixed income to review their plans and make...

Many Washington residents do not have an estate plan or will. If they die unexpectedly, their family members will have only prior personal conversations to rely on regarding the division of assets. Unfortunately, people...