Search Results

lifetime benefit You should also purchase lifetime benefits over the life of the policy and inflation protection

Sumner recently removed Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman, who was a trusted adviser and long described as Sumner ’s second son, as well as Viacom director George Abrams from his trust.

Trustworthy Agent The first and most important step you can take is to appoint a trustworthy agent. Think carefully about who you want acting on your behalf, as you need to appoint someone you trust to This professional fiduciary can be a bank with trust powers, a certified public accountant (CPA), or a trust company. Backup Agent In addition to having a trustworthy agent, it is encouraged for you to have a backup agent

1. Set goals. Set out your short-term and long-term goals with your family, spouse, or significant other. If you’re single, make a list for yourself. Be as specific as you can and brainstorm, then prioritize these items by picking your top four or five. Attach a cost to these to see if they are achievable within your budget. 2. Develop a new budget. Review last year’s spending and see how it aligns with your values and your goals. Then, develop a new budget using last year’s as a benchmark. Move your expenses to reflect your core values while also incorporating the top four or five priorities from the first step. 3. Open multiple savings accounts. Set aside specific, separate savings accounts for some of your goals to ensure that you won’t raid savings for one expenditure to use for another and to make it easier for you to spend money as planned. 4. Summarize your net worth. Include the value of your assets. Include real estate, cash, investments, life insurance cash value, jewelry and cars. Next, list what you owe on auto loans, mortgages, credit card debts, and student loans. The difference is your net worth. 5. Summarize your insurance. Create a summary sheet for your health, life, disability, liability, and long-term care insurance policies and include expirations dates and the basics for each one. 6. Review your investments. See if your total exposure to the stock market makes sense given your risk tolerance and your proximity to retirement. 7. Check on your estate plan. Review the titling of your accounts, your beneficiary designations, and your estate planning documents to see if they still apply or whether changes are needed. Schedule a visit with your estate planning attorney to make the revisions. If you don’t have a will, ask the attorney to draft one ASAP. Dying without a will can create complex and expensive consequences for your loved ones. 8. Organize your financial documents. Create a file for all of your financial documents and include a list of all current credit cards, driver’s license, monthly bills, the location of your safe deposit box and keys, marriage and birth certificates, passports, online passwords and account numbers and a video recording of your home contents. Personally identifiable information should be in a secure, encrypted electronic file or in a safe deposit box. Each item on this list is important, but you don’t have to do everything all at once. Set aside some time each week to work on your financial to-do list so it’s not so overwhelming. It’s important to set yearly goals and to simplify and improve your financial picture. Reference: Nerd Wallet (January 7, 2016) “How to Improve Your Finances in 2016” #HoustonAssetProtection #EstatePlanningLawyer #ProbateAttorney #WillChanges #HoustonWills #Inheritance

with an estate planning and elder law attorney to discuss which options are available to you to best protect Serving the Houston area for nearly 25 years, Your Legacy Legal Care is ready to assist you in protecting

Probate litigation can be avoided by using trusts . Trusts are an extremely powerful estate planning tool that can skip probate altogether, ultimately skipping If you are unsure of whether you would like to use a trust, there are other strategies that may be used

Robo-advising, as it’s been called, has increased in popularity over the past few years. It’s being popularized by companies like Betterment LLC. Launched in 2010, this service essentially allows high earners under age 50 to enter their information and goals, after which, algorithms suggest investment opportunities, typically at low-risk. Banks are interested in robo-advising because these systems could be very beneficial in cutting costs. Banks wouldn’t have to hire as many employees. With full-service brokers typically charging annual fees of at least one percent on a $100k investment, the difference could be more than $50,000 in savings over 20 years, given the same annual returns. Human advisers will still need to manage more nuanced situations, especially when it comes to high-end clients. These will include things like estate planning and tax advice. Reference: Tech Times (November 6, 2015) “Bank of America Wants Robots To Be In Charge Of Giving Financial Advice” #HoustonAssetProtection #HoustonEstatePlanning #RoboAdvising #TaxPlanning

These findings were highlighted in the Barron’s article, “Preparing for Inheritance: How to Avoid Losing It All,” which also notes that smart financial, tax, and estate plans by themselves don’t create good stewards of wealth. Senior generations have to teach their heirs about the legacy they’re going to inherit, uniting the family unit around its accomplishments and civic engagement. When it does this, it has a better chance to preserve the family fortune as well as the family bond. Communication lets heirs have an understanding of their predecessors’ values, responsibilities, and choices. This may reveal ideals, beliefs, values, and shared visions that might otherwise have been left unsaid and allows the family to foster a common vision to support a common purpose for future generations. Annual family meetings should be scheduled with a goal of promoting family harmony. Eventually the family’s principal advisors, including those for legal, tax, and financial concerns, should receive a copy of a “heritage statement.” This is a formal document of the family’s story, values, and vision, and when it’s updated, the advisors should also get a new copy. A heritage statement should sharpen the family’s vision as it is to be shared outside the family. With a clearly defined vision, advisors’ recommendations can be coordinated with the family’s goals, beliefs, and values. Your family can up its chances of maintaining wealth rather than destroying it with the use of family meetings and the heritage design process for wise financial and estate planning. Contact a qualified estate planning attorney to assist you. Reference: Barron’s (November 7, 2015) “Preparing for Inheritance: How to Avoid Losing It All” #AssetProtection #HoustonEstatePlanning #HeritageStatement #Inheritance #HoustonEstatePlanningLawyer #TaxPlanning #HoustonProbate #HoustonTrustsandEstates #HoustonProbateAttorney

A Medical Power of Attorney appoints a trusted person to make decisions for the individual if the individual also help with elder law issues, VA and Medicaid planning and other issues related to special needs trusts

Many people believe that, unless they own huge sprawling mansions or complicated trust funds, they have Do you want to protect assets in the event that you become disabled or unable to manage your finances children under 18, you should ask whether there is any additional documentation you need to prepare, to protect

Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts. The grantor who creates the GRAT usually receives annuity payments from the trust that add up to the Qualified Personal Residence Trusts. Charitable Remainder Annuity Trusts. With a CRAT, you place assets into a trust and name one or more charities as the ultimate beneficiary

assets and family should you and your partner pass at the same time, begin by reviewing your will or trust To put a plan in place to protect your estate from simultaneous deaths or to get your existing plan reviewed