Man and woman with blueprints

Your estate plan may not be effective, if it is not updated to account for changing circumstances. People sometimes think that if they have an estate plan, their work is done. They put the plan on the shelf and do not consider changes in their lives that will affect the plan, according to Market Watch […]

question mark

Fairly dividing an estate among the children can be difficult with remarriages. Resolving the issue of dividing an estate with a blended family, sparked a recent letter to Market Watch in “How do I split my estate between my two stepdaughters and biological son?“. Among the issues in the letter were people remarried with children […]

last will and testament

A will may be cheaper than a trust now. However, that may not be the case in the long run. Many people decide on wills instead of trusts to save time and money. The problem with that thinking is that a will is more expensive overall than a trust, according to the Times Herald-Record in “Trusts […]

Senior Couple At Home

Now is the time to think about a happy future. However, it is also time to prepare your spouse for handling any future estate challenges. You have decided to marry and focus on the good times. However, it may also be wise to think about the importance of protecting your new spouse with some new or […]

Holding Hands with Elderly Patient

Medicaid is designed to pay for long-term care in nursing homes for Americans who cannot afford it. The New York Times recently discussed the debate over the ethics of hiding your assets to qualify for the government payment of long-term nursing care in its article “The Ethics of Adjusting Your Assets to Qualify for Medicaid.” […]

Old couple

Perhaps it would be wise to visit an estate planning attorney before traveling to other countries. It might be prudent to consider the worst case scenarios and speak with an estate planning attorney before traveling to foreign nations, according to the Wills, Trusts & Estates Prof Blog in “So You’re Going on a Trip.” In […]

Happy-old-couple

The document may be well written but is your spouse prepared to handle it? You should speak with your spouse and prepare them to handle your estate plan when the time comes, according to Forbes in “5 Questions You Should Ask Your Spouse Today.” Your spouse needs to know what to do if you ever […]

Elder Couple with Bills

“Gray divorces” can present some challenging legal situations. Divorces by senior citizens can create challenges of dividing up a lifetime of accumulated marital property as well as the likely requirement of a new estate plan, according to the Indiana Lawyer in “Rise in divorces among older couples presents unique family law issues.” The big issue […]

last will and testament

It just doesn’t make sense to fill out an online form and take the risk of future problems. There is no actual advantage to creating an online will, because you might save now but, in the long run the bill could get very high, according to MoneySense in “Danger of DIY Wills.” The one advantage […]

Happy old couple

Planning for your retirement and planning your estate can turn out to be a real benefit. Estate planning and retirement planning are pretty much the same thing. Sometimes, if your estate planning attorney and financial advisor work together, both types of plans  work better for you, according to TD Ameritrade in “Estate Planning: Build Up, […]