Are you considering becoming a Florida resident? There are many factors to consider. Most people want to give up their residency in New York and change to Florida in order to avoid income taxes and the New York State estate tax. People also make the change in order to qualify for the homestead exemption and...
Charitable Giving Through Your Estate: How Floridians Can Leave a Legacy
An estate plan can allow you to leave assets to your children, family, and friends. However, there are many other things you can do with an estate plan, including leaving assets to charity. In this article, we examine how to make charitable contributions in Florida through your estate plan.
Estate Planning for Blended Families in Florida: Strategies for a Seamless Inheritance
Getting remarried after a divorce or the death of a prior spouse should motivate spouses to establish or revise an estate plan. However, when spouses combine their families, estate planning can come with significant personal and legal challenges. Blended families should familiarize themselves with strategies that can help make the estate...
How to Devise Homestead Property in Florida
If one owns property in Florida as homestead property, the property automatically passes to one's heirs at death. That sounds great and easy, but the reality is that as an owner of the property, you may not want your property to pass to all of your next of kin, in equal...
Intestacy: What Happens When One Dies Without a Will
When someone dies without a will, the assets owned by that person do not pass to the State. Rather, the laws of the State where one resides determine who the assets are distributed to. Generally speaking, the people who inherit are...
What to do Upon the Death of a Loved One
Knowing what to do when a loved one dies can alleviate some uncertainty and anxiety. Death certificates will be needed for each asset owned, as well as for filing(s) with governmental agencies. If the decedent was collecting a pension or social security, the appropriate...
An Overview of Probate in Florida
Probate is the court-supervised process of administering a deceased person’s will. Although probate sometimes leads to litigation, the majority of probate cases are purely administrative. In other words, in most cases, the court simply supervises the probate process to ensure that the law is followed and that the wishes of the...
SOME TIPS ON GETTING YOUR AFFAIRS IN ORDER
There are a number of relatively easy steps which can be taken in order to simplify your estate plan, thus saving time and money for you and your family.
It is not uncommon...
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The Dangers of Doing a Life Estate Deed
Clients are often interested in doing a life estate deed as part of their estate plan. What is a life estate deed? It is one where the owner of the real property transfers the property to his or her children (or other family members), reserving the right to reside in...
ESTATE PLANNING WITH TIME SHARES & VACATION HOMES
Most people are unaware that having a time share can create estate planning problems. Time shares are typically considered real property, and the ownership is evidenced by a deed. As such, they are considered an asset for estate planning and tax purposes. They are used as vacation homes and...