Estate Planning: I Don’t Care What You Want Whenever people come into my office to talk about their estate plan I always tell them something up front: I don’t care what you want. Yep, I actually say that. But not in the context that you might be thinking. There are a lot of estate planning attorneys out there that want to show everyone how smart they are or get you to create the newest, coolest estate plan vehicle, or just…
What is a Beneficiary Waiver When someone dies in the family and there are assets to be distributed amongst family members, there is almost always at least a minor amount of tension created. First, most people don’t know the rules surrounding probate so they aren’t sure what is going on or exactly how much authority the named Personal Representative actually has. Second, one starts to get legal documents in the mail to sign that seem a little sketchy at…
Business Succession 1/2: Power of Attorney for Your Business This is the second installment of the HOB series “Succession” summary and takeaway. The theme of this episode was the Power of Attorney for business succession planning. This episode was all about who would step in and run the company while the patriarch was out of commission with a stroke. It was also about who would be making decision regarding his medical care (this was quickly resolved with the wife -…
I think we’re just going to start this message by getting real honest… I’m not sure how to start these messages off. I thought about saying “Hello friends” or something like that, but that’s not really my style. And “What’s up?!” seems a little too informal. So for now I think I’m just going to dive right into everything. If you have any suggestions let me know. Okay, on to my thoughts of the week – investment vs. cost. Last…
Succession 1/1: 5 Estate Planning Takeaways A new show recently debuted on HBO called “Succession” and it combines two things I love: Estate planning and business. I thought it would make a great topic for the show, and give me something to break up the content from just talking straight estate planning all the time. HBO’s succession is a story about the succession of the second generation to take over the business of the first – the patriarch of the…
Happy Monday to you! I’ve decided, after about a three month hiatus, that it’s time to get back on the weekly newsletter horse. I have too much to say, and by holding back from you I’m really doing you a disservice. If you don’t remember (or if you’re pretty new to my world), Rich Life Letter is an outlet for me to talk about some of the higher lever concepts I’m constantly thinking about. It’s less “check out this new…
Tax Implications of a Revocable Living Trust When people think about avoiding taxes they often think of using trusts as shelters. Unfortunately, those assumptions about trusts as tax shelters are wrong. Today I wanted to clear the air and lay out precisely the tax implications of a revocable living trust. It’s probably best to just start at the beginning and talk a little bit about what a revocable living trust is and what it does. The way I usually describe…
