Elders are at high risk of being financially exploited by criminals. Conditions that are common among the elderly, including cognitive impairment, make them less able than others to identify when others don’t have their best interests in mind. Fortunately, it is possible to lower the risk of elder exploitation through the estate...
REVOCABLE & IRREVOCABLE TRUSTS: A COMPARISON
Clients often ask to have a trust prepared, not knowing the differences between a revocable trust and an irrevocable trust. One of the most important questions to ask oneself when undertaking trust planning is what your goals are. Are they to avoid probate, to protect assets from creditors, or to...
Reasons to Avoid Probate in Florida
If you fail to create an estate plan, your assets will likely have to go through the probate process after you pass away. Probate is a court-supervised process by which your assets are distributed to your heir and creditors. Unfortunately, probate has many downsides, which leads many people to take steps to...
Common Problems That Can Arise During Florida Probate
Probate is a court-supervised process that transfers a deceased person’s assets to his or her beneficiaries. Although it is possible to avoid the probate process by creating an estate plan, not everyone chooses to do so. And, unfortunately, it is not uncommon for problems to arise during probate. In this article, we...
ESTATE PLANNING TIPS: HOW TO KEEP HARMONY IN THE FAMILY
While not a legal matter, when doing estate planning an important aspect is how your loved ones will react to your choices of Executor, health care agent, power of attorney, etc. The last thing most people want is for their children or other loved ones to fight or become hostile to...
Three Key Duties of a Florida Personal Representative
A personal representative, also called an executor, is the person chosen to administer a deceased person’s estate. In doing so, a personal representative is held to the highest standard of care and must act in the best interests of the estate’s beneficiaries. Thus, the personal representative plays a key role in the...
A Guide To Organizing Your Estate Plan
One of the simple things clients can do in terms of getting their affairs in order is to make a detailed list of their assets, with account numbers, and telephone numbers, so that when something happens to him/her, family members will know where the assets are and can easily access them. ...
Modifying an Irrevocable Trust in Florida
Most people who create an estate plan include a trust of some sort. A popular and effective type of trust is the irrevocable trust. An irrevocable trust is a legal document that is generally not subject to modification or revocation upon its execution. However, there are a few exceptions that allow a...
Should Your Home Be Placed In A Trust
SHOULD YOUR HOME BE PLACED IN A TRUST
Clients often ask if it makes sense to put their home(s) in a trust. Since there are a few types of trusts which are appropriate for a home, the decision of which type is best...
Estate Planning for Florida Snowbirds
With winter in full swing, snowbirds are flocking to Florida to escape the frigid northern temperatures. Moving south for the winter requires a lot of preparation. However, one preparatory step that many snowbirds fail to consider is estate planning. As a snowbird, living in more than one state during the year can...