Author Archives: Site Administrator
Planning for Long-Term Care Before It’s Too Late
Starting to plan for elder care should happen when you are in your 50s or 60s. By the time you are 70, it may be too late. With the national median annual cost of a private room in a nursing facility coming in at more than $100, 000, not having a plan can become… Read More »
How Bad Can a Do-It-Yourself Estate Plan Be? Very!
Here’s a real world example of why what seems like a good idea backfires, as reported in The National Law Review’s article “Unintended Consequences of a Do-It-Yourself Estate Plan.” Mrs. Ann Aldrich wrote her own will, using a preprinted legal form. She listed her property, including account numbers for her financial accounts. She left… Read More »
Will Your Estate Plan Work Now?
The demise of the stretch IRA is causing many IRA owners and their advisors to take a look at how their estate plans will work under the new law. An article from Financial Advisor titled “Navigating The New Estate Planning Realities” offers several different planning alternatives. Take larger IRA distributions during your lifetime. If… Read More »
How Can Long-Distance Caregivers Help Loved Ones?
A recent article noted that long-distance caregivers have the same concerns and pressures as local caregivers, perhaps even more. They spend about twice as much on caregiving as people caring for a loved one nearby, because they’re more likely to need to hire help, take uncompensated time off work and pay for travel. A… Read More »
How Can Siblings Work Together to Care for Dad?
Sibling rivalries can reappear when the family must pull together to help care for an aging parent. This is especially true, if one adult child is doing the bulk of the caregiving and there’s little support from siblings. The same is true when one sibling is paying for professional caregiving or medical expenses. There… Read More »
What Do I Need to Know about Medicare in 2020?
CNBC’s recent article entitled “Here’s what you need to know about your 2020 Medicare costs” reports that Medicare will have some higher costs this year that you may want to factor into your health-care budget. The Medicare program has about 61 million beneficiaries, most of whom are 65 or older. These people will see… Read More »
Estate Planning for Unmarried Couples
For some couples, getting married just doesn’t feel necessary. However, they don’t enjoy the automatic legal rights and protections that legally wed spouses do, especially when it comes to death. There are many spousal rights that come with a marriage certificate, reports CNBC in the article “Here’s what happens to your partner if you’re… Read More »
Include Fido or Fluffy in Estate Planning
If you are a pet owner, you no doubt make plans for your pet when you go on vacation. If you are a very dedicated pet owner, perhaps you have already made provisions in your will or created a pet trust. If your pet outlives you, then such a trust can provide for your… Read More »
Alternatives for Stretch IRA Strategies
The majority of many people’s wealth is in their IRAs, that is saved from a lifetime of work. Their goal is to leave their IRAs to their children, says a recent article from Think Advisor titled “Three Replacements for Stretch IRAs.” The ability to distribute IRA wealth over years, and even decades, was eliminated… Read More »
Why Would I Need a Power of Attorney?
Recently Heard’s article entitled “6 Reasons to Choose a Power of Attorney” provides us with several reasons why you want to have one drafted. Choose Who Can Make the Decisions on Your Behalf. If you have a signed a power of attorney and later you become incapacitated and are unable to make decisions, the… Read More »