These vacation homes may also comprise a significant portion of the family's wealth. Therefore, it's understandable that homeowners want to pass their properties and family traditions to future generations. Many family traditions include gatherings at vacation homes. However, leaving these proper...
Financial exploitation comes in many forms, and older adults are often the victims. AARP's recent article entitled “The Legal Consequences of Elder Fraud Can Be Steep” reports that romance scams and similar financial abuse are on the rise. Older, lonely, or heartbroken adults are common targets. ...
Japanese study found older male golfers were 37% less likely to get dementia. Retirees now have the great excuse to spend more time on the fairways, since playing golf may cut the risk of getting dementia, says The Daily Mail's recent article entitled, “Playing GOLF could cut your risk of getting...
It's hard for a family to recuperate when the patriarchs and matriarchs have gone to glory, leaving a battle for who will carry the family's leadership role and manage the family's transition of wealth. Families who have lived through settling an estate without an estate plan will agree that the ...
Unfortunately, there are several common missteps people make in their estate planning that can lead to unwanted results. Read on to discover the two things you should never include in your will, as well as what to substitute instead. Let's look at what shouldn't be in a will, according to Best Li...
In 2017, Congress doubled the exemption starting in 2018, and the amount will continue to rise with inflation through 2025. This expansion helped reduce the number of taxable estates to about 1,300 for returns filed in 2020 from about 5,200 in 2017, according to the latest IRS data. The expanded ...
Legislation introduced last week in the House of Representatives would reform the tax code in an effort to make long-term care insurance more affordable and accessible for older adults. A new bill aimed at making long-term care insurance more affordable has the backing of Argentum and the America...
When it comes to owning property in two different states, you may wonder how to manage these in your estate plans. Cleveland Jewish News' recent article titled “Use attorney when considering multi-state estate plan” says that if a person owns real estate or other tangible property (like a boat) i...
For those of us involved as care providers for someone having difficulty handling his/her own affairs, whether it's a family member or not, requires that we have the legal authority to do what's in that person's best interest. Tyron Daily Bulletin's recent article entitled “How to get power of at...
Given their salaries and the chances of getting sued, physicians should strongly consider estate planning early in their careers. When the newly minted physician completes their residency and begins practicing, the last thing on their minds is getting their estate plan in order. Instead, they sho...
Leaving behind a huge tax bill for your heirs with the stretch IRA scuttled? Here are some ways around it as lawmakers consider an updated SECURE Act. The idea of leaving a large inheritance to loved ones is a dream for some parents. However, without careful planning, heirs may end up with a larg...
Heidi Royal, who was employed as an accountant at an Atlanta-based wealth management firm, has pleaded guilty to federal charges arising from a scheme to defraud one of the firm's [elderly] clients. “Royal exploited the trust placed in her by an elderly client who was unable to manage her own aff...
Like DMX and Prince, many Black Americans have failed to participate in the estate planning process. When hip-hop star DMX died in 2021, he had no will and only a few liquid assets. His estimated 15 children are expecting a share of his estate, but the estate has been in the probate court for mon...
Dealing with a sick family member is a challenging and emotional time. It's not uncommon for adult children to have to face a parent's decline and a stay in hospice at the end of their life. The children are tasked with trying to prepare for his passing. This includes how to handle his financial ...
In order to give your brother half of the assets in the IRA, you will have to liquidate a portion of the account and pay the taxes on the liquidated amount if it's a traditional IRA. Let's say that you are the beneficiary of your brother's IRA. All of his assets were supposed to be split between ...
It's true that if your child is on your deed as a joint tenant on your home, your home will not have to go through probate if your child survives you. At your death, your surviving child would immediately become the sole owner of your home without probate and with minimal transfer costs. There ar...
White House officials on Monday outlined more than 20 separate actions, many of them sought by advocates and opposed by the industry. Nursing home residents represent a disproportionate share of deaths in the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Biden administration has been working to develop home- and co...
The COVID pandemic has shown how palliative care can also be valuable for managing the pain and stress of illness. Palliative care can give relief to those with severe, but not necessarily life-ending, health conditions. However, frequently patients and their physicians fails to understand that t...
In today's digital era, the departed will be survived by their electronic footprints, such as iPhone photo albums, Spotify playlists—and cryptocurrency wallets. If you have $10 of Bitcoin in a cryptocurrency wallet or $1 million stashed offline in cold storage, you need a plan to help your next o...
As the coronavirus pandemic increased anxiety and upended many lives, it led U.S. millennials to get more serious about end-of-life planning. According to new research, 72% of U.S. millennials (ages 25 to 40) with wills created them or updated them in the past year. Digital Assets are a primary ...
The rise in the stock market over the past several years, teamed with the passage of the SECURE Act two years ago—as well as the scheduled 50% reduction in the size of the federal estate tax exemption four years from now—has resulted in a renewed interest in estate planning for IRA and 401(k) acc...
A charitable trust allows you to donate assets to a chosen tax-exempt charitable organization or nonprofit and comes with certain tax benefits to help you minimize what you might owe to the government. Charitable trusts including a Charitable Lead Trust can be created to provide a reliable income...
In estate planning, the use of trusts to manage the distribution of assets is becoming increasingly more common. However, for many people, the idea of setting up a trust during his or her lifetime is overwhelming and perhaps even unnecessary. If you want the power of a trust without the work of m...
Right now, strokes are largely untreatable. However, a group of researchers at the University of Arizona hopes to change that. There's new research on strokes that comes at a time when nearly 800,000 Americans suffer a stroke each year, according to the CDC. Strokes are a serious Senior Health i...
Estate planning is not a requirement. No one can force you to make your will, create a power of attorney or to own your property in a way to avoid probate. As a result, people too often let common estate planning excuses stand in their way. A person with a physical or cognitive disability may qua...
Law Offices of Kent W. Keating is committed to answering your questions about Estate Planning and Business Law issues in Westlake Village, California. We offer consultations and we'll gladly discuss your case with you at your convenience. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.