Selecting your trustee is one of the most important estate planning choices you’ll ever have to make.
While your executor’s responsibilities are limited to handling the execution of your Will, your trustee’s responsibilities may extend years or even generations into the future. And the choices they make can have far-reaching repercussions that affect all your beneficiaries in small and large ways.
As if losing a parent wasn’t hard enough, that loss often comes hand in hand with the very real potential for life-changing sibling rivalry over the inheritance. In fact, disagreement over whether an inheritance has been divided fairly is the number one cause of adult sibling rivalry.
At the root of all such conflicts is a lack of clear and consistent communication. When no one is willing to talk frankly about such concerns ahead of time, it’s inevitable that individual players will develop their own expectations about what they “deserve.”
At the same time, the parent—even when well meaning—may also hold opinions or make assumptions that are detrimental to a truly equitable inheritance strategy.
You know about Wills – hopefully you have one! You probably are also familiar with other estate planning documents such as a power of attorney and an advance health care directive.
But do you know what a trust is? Do you know what purpose it serves?
And…should you have one?
If you want Medicaid in Connecticut to pay for your long-term care, one thing you should NOT do is give away your assets – unless you think you won’t need Medicaid within the next five years.
When you apply for Medicaid for long-term care in either a nursing facility or in your home, you are required to provide financial records for the past five years. This is called the “look back” period. Continue reading
What would happen to your business if you were unexpectedly incapacitated? How long could your company survive if you weren’t there to make the decisions that keep the operation moving? What kinds of calamity might come about even in a short period of time if certain contracts weren’t signed, deals weren’t negotiated, or personnel weren’t hired?
As a business owner, a lot depends on you.
You are responsible not only for the health and profitability of your company, but also the health and wellbeing of the people—family, employees, etc.—who depend on your company for their livelihood, income, and security.
During a time of grief and sadness, the thought of having to go through probate can understandably bring on additional anxiety and confusion.
And, if your loved one owned out-of-state property, you may now be tasked with dealing with an additional layer of cumbersome paperwork and probate proceedings.
So you may wondering…
So you’ve been doing your estate planning homework. You’ve learned that perhaps you should have a trust in addition to a Will.
But then you hear that there are different types of trusts!
In this blog post I’ll help you understand the difference between the two main trusts that you may want to consider: the revocable trust and irrevocable trust. Continue reading
Purchasing annuities is a good way for married couples to protect assets, but doing it wrong could mean huge penalties. Here is what you need to know about annuities as it relates to Medicaid planning in Connecticut:
If your spouse is residing in a nursing home or is in need of home care, chances are you’ve read our blogs about the ways to protect your assets and qualify your spouse for Medicaid benefits. But not all strategies apply to all couples.
Just as a refresher, under the Medicaid rules, the Institutionalized Spouse (IS) may only have a maximum of $1,600 in assets in his name. The Community Spouse (CS) may have a house, a car and up to half of a maximum of $130,380, called the Community Spouse Protected Amount (CSPA). While there are income requirements for the IS, the CS may have as much income as she receives with no limit.
If a loved one has named you as their POA (Power of Attorney), you now have written permission to help manage that loved one’s financial decisions during his or her lifetime.
It’s a powerful document. It puts complete trust and authority in you to handle the financial matters of the person who has named you as their agent.
Depending on how the document is constructed, as POA, you may have the authority to oversee transactions such as changing beneficiary designations, accessing a safe deposit box, dealing with the IRS and the State on tax matters, or creating, funding, and requesting distributions from trusts.
(Note: this post has been updated due to potential IRS changes)
Do you know about the new changes that could affect your retirement accounts? Some are positive, others may require you to make some new planning decisions.
Either way, the goal of this new legislation is to improve retirement security for many Americans. And that’s a good thing.
Connecticut Estate Planning Attorneys Blog
