One of the most important steps that happens after a personal representative is appointed to your case, is the determination of date of death values. All assets that you owned inside your probate estate must be valued so that they can be liquidated to raise cash, to pay for debt taxes, debts, and expenses. It… Read More »
Posts Categorized: Estate Planning
How to Do an Estate Planning Checkup
An estate planning checkup is your opportunity to review your life circumstances and the existing strategies and documents you’ve pulled together to protect your interests while you’re alive and your assets after you pass away. Estate planning is essential to ensure that everything you have worked so hard to obtain and protect over your lifetime… Read More »
10 Goals You Can Achieve with the Process of Estate Planning
Estate plans do not fit a general rule of one-size-fits-all. Your goals will influence what kind of estate planning documents you’ll need. If you have children, for example, you’ll want to be sure to appoint a guardian and conservator. If you want to maintain control over assets after you pass, then you will want to… Read More »
Does Anyone Have Personal Liability for Debts in an Estate?
When a loved one passes away it can generate a lot of financial confusion. This is especially true as different credit card companies, medical billing agencies, and other creditors need to be notified about the deceased’s passing. In these circumstances it can raise difficult questions around whether or not anyone else is responsible for the… Read More »
Which Assets Are Not Subject to Intestate Succession?
Some assets do not pass through a will. This is because every state has intestate succession laws which allow property to be passed on to surviving family members in priority order even when no will exists. Typically only blood relatives and spouses are eligible to inherit under intestate succession laws. This means that charities, friends… Read More »
Which Assets Are Not Subject to Intestate Succession?
Some assets do not pass through a will. This is because every state has intestate succession laws which allow property to be passed on to surviving family members in priority order even when no will exists. Typically only blood relatives and spouses are eligible to inherit under intestate succession laws. This means that charities, friends… Read More »
How Does a Beneficiary Get Money from a Payable on Death Bank Account?
There are many different options when it comes to passing on your estate assets and many people will look for the simplest way to pass on assets to their loved one. In these circumstances a payable on death bank account is one streamlined way to allow a beneficiary in your estate to claim funds quickly…. Read More »
How to Protect a Loved One from Identity Theft After Their Death
Did you know that recently deceased people are very high targets for exploitation after they pass away? This might come as a surprise as a family member or close friend of a deceased person as you are navigating all of the complexities of working through your own grief and potentially even your role in their… Read More »
What Is the Real Financial and Emotional Cost of Caregiving?
Caregiving has become a common topic of conversation among adult children who are now taking care of their elderly loved ones. When someone has had a decline in cognitive or physical ability, the first reaction is often to leverage family members or friends to ensure that this person’s safety is not compromised while still allowing… Read More »
Who Can Become Legal Guardian of an Incapacitated Person in Massachusetts?
Not everyone who wishes to serve in the important role of guardian for an incapacitated person can necessarily become one. This is because in Massachusetts guardians must be appointed by the probate and family court. Guardianship is not automatically applied to the parent of an incapacitated adult. A temporary guardian could be appointed if it… Read More »