Who will foot the bill if you need a nursing home? That’s a question popping up for more and more families in America these days. Long term care insurance is extremely expensive and premiums have been on the rise in recent years. This doesn't bode well ...
Study Shows Retirement Targets Have Shifted
The COVID-19 pandemic presented a unique set of challenges for financial and retirement planning and now investors are looking ahead to the future with different priorities. A recent research study from Northwestern Mutual shows that over one third of Ame ...
What Digital Accounts and Assets Might You Be Forgetting in Your Estate Plan?
A relatively new category of assets that you should include in your estate plan are those that are digital. Due to the digital age, many people don't think about how many accounts they have opened or how difficult it would be for loved ones to access thos ...
What Is a Fiduciary’s Duty of Impartiality?
A fiduciary has several different responsibilities to the beneficiaries of an estate or a trust. Violating these could constitute a breach of fiduciary duty and being removed from this role or even being found personally accountable for financial mistakes ...
Short Term Versus Legacy: Your Financial Plan
It can be difficult to ensure that you have enough funds set aside for retirement and that you've done the appropriate strategies and planning to protect yourself later on. But this also must be balanced with your interest in creating a legacy. How do ...
How Does an Executor Gather Assets?
Before an executor can serve in their future duties as personal representative for a deceased person's estate, they must begin by inventorying all assets. Identifying all assets that belong to the decedents and safekeeping them if necessary are two import ...
What Is Intestate?
Estate planning refers to comprehensive financial planning such as making a will, using trusts or pulling together other strategies that help pass on your assets after you pass away. If you do not have a will as part of your estate planning, however, you ...
Are You Sending Your Child to College with a Power of Attorney Form?
As a parent it's easy to feel like your job might never be done but as your child goes off to college this fall, remember that you will not be able to make decisions for them if they are age 18 and above. This is because they are viewed as a legal adult a ...
What are Some Reasons for Someone to Get Incapacitated?
Estate planning seems like the right choice for someone older with a lot of assets, but this overlooks the possibility of incapacity issues that could derail your family or chosen agents from being able to act quickly. Incapacity planning is all about ...
What Are Transfer on Death Accounts?
Transfer on death accounts are those accounts that allow you to move ownership to a beneficiary when you, as the owner, pass away. This is recognized under certain state laws and doesn't require the involvement of the probate courts. Many different assets ...