“In the first few weeks after the death,” attorneys Liza Hanks and Carol Elias Zolla warn trustees and executors in the book The Trustee’s Legal Companion, “you should pick up the phone and notify the Social Security Administration of the death by calling...
“Prince died without a will, according to court documents filed by his sister on Tuesday, potentially causing big complications for that star’s sprawling financial estate and musical legacy,” the New York Timesreports. Why is a will so crucial in settling an estate?...
“There are several reasons why a beneficiary might disclaim a bequest,” Theodore Hughes and David Klein explain in The Executor’s Handbook. Those reasons include: Another survivor has a great need. (If Robert Smith’s brother leaves him $100,000, and Robert doesn’t...
“Irrevocable trusts, by their very nature, do not change – at least that’s what we tend to think,” Trevor Chuna, CPF®, observes in the Journal of Financial Planning. But since a trust is a vehicle used to transfer and manage assets to meet the objectives of the...
“Dividing a home among siblings takes planning and cooperation,” cautions Caroline E. Mayer, writing in the AARP Bulletin. Mayer recounts the 17-year family rift created among Olivia Boyce-Abel and her three siblings when their mother died, leaving an old family...
Most people tend to delay taxes as long as possible, but this can backfire when it comes to IRAs, Eileen Ambrose, writing in the AARP Bulletin, points out. For retirees in their 60s, Required Minimum Distributions haven’t yet kicked in, plus the disbursements are...
“Estate sale companies simplify what can be a tough time for many, whether it’s downsizing, disability, or death in the family,” Fox 59 reports. When someone has died, the administration of an estate requires that debts and expenses be paid first, with the...
A spendthrift provision creates an irrevocable trust preventing creditors from attaching the interest of the beneficiary in the trust before that interest (cash or property) is actually distributed to him or her. You’re working with your estate planning attorney,...
An observation we find ourselves making all too often at Geyer Law is that Veteran’s Benefits are among the most misunderstood and underutilized resources. Our firm’s focus is with the Veteran’s Benefits Administration, one of three areas within the Department of...
When it comes to administering an estate, the same common sense rule applies as when the testator (the one who has passed away) was still alive: a person must first attend to his own debts and expenses before he or she can give away what is left, observes Alexander...
