People always ask us how often they should review their estate plan, whether it be a Will or Revocable Living Trust. Just as your family changes, your estate plan should reflect those changes. Good estate planning attorneys try to plan ahead for as many contingencies as possible in each estate plan. However, even the...

It is never too soon to write a will, and have powers of attorney drafted, particularly if you are married and have children. Young families in Pennsylvania need to have a fundamental estate plan in place. Once the fundamentals are in place, as your family grows, you can build on your estate plan...

Do you have children or grandchildren and you're worried about saving enough for their college tuition? Of course, you're not alone... this economy has not made it any easier on us to save for our children's future. Yet, it is essential that we engage in this type of planning. The less debt your...

Does a marriage or civil union by a same-sex couple translate to the same rights in Pennsylvania, particularly for inheritance taxes? According to a recent article in Forbes magazine and a recent case in Pennsylvania, the answer is no.

Although more states have added civil unions or marriage for same sex couples...

If you are like most folks these days, you have a significant portion of your estate saved in retirement accounts (IRA, 401(k), 403(b), TSP, etc).  Retirement accounts are a great legacy planning tool because they offer the ability for your beneficiaries to continue the tax-deferred treatment (e.g. “Stretch IRA”).  Unfortunately, many beneficiaries...

A great resource to learn more about IRA's, Roth conversions and more is Natalie Choate's podcast page. Natalie is one of the foremost expert on IRA's.

Should you convert your IRA to a Roth IRA? What effect does remarriage have on your retirement? What things should you avoid with your inherited IRA? Natalie's podcast page is...

Make sure you have your estate plan up to date. Here is a quick to-do list. There is no better time than now to get serious about creating or updating your plan.

Make sure you have an updated Last Will & Testament: This describes your wishes for your estate upon your...

 

I cannot count how many times I have heard people say, “I don’t care what happens when I’m gone… They can do what they want with my stuff, I won’t be here!”

I could likely convince over 90% of the people who say that to me, that they actually do care, but they’re...

We have been getting a lot of questions into our office about how the impending 'Fiscal Cliff' may affect estate plans. The Fiscal Cliff would occur starting January 1, 2013 if Congress takes no action. Income taxes would increase, capital gains taxes would increase, estate tax and gift tax exemptions would sharply drop...

Last week, we tackled some pretty major questions about protecting your retirement accounts as part of your estate, given the limited protections offered by traditional wills.  You can read that article here.  This week, we’re picking up where we left off and answering four more questions. 

 

4. Why does a...