When considering the creation of a trust for the purpose of protecting retirement savings (IRAs) and passing them down to children and loved ones, there are several things to consider and a few stumbling blocks that can get in the way. Still, with the help of an experienced estate planning attorney, you can do a lot to ensure that an IRA will be around for a long time to come.
Protecting Your Retirement Savings with a Trust: Potential Problems
Protecting Your Retirement Savings with a Trust: Why You Might
Retirement savings accounts are a common inclusion in comprehensive estate plans, left by parents to their children or from a single adult to a loved one. A problem, or less than ideal situation, that often occurs in situations such as these involves children who are bent on spending that money quickly or carelessly.
Estate Tax Coming Back to Haunt the Middle Class
In 2010, the estate tax expired and Congress, marred by indecision and partisan politics, failed to reinstate it. As a result, 2010 was a very lucrative year for some, perhaps most notably, the heirs to George Steinbrenner's fortune. Estimated at more than $1 billion, upwards up $500 million in the Steinbrenner estate was saved from government coffers.
Protect Your Assets by Estate Planning Early
In the past few years, there have been enough economic ups and downs to fill a theme park. Planning your future finances when so much in the present seems up for grabs may seem like a second tier priority, but the earlier you consider estate planning, the better chance you have of protecting your assets.
The Importance of Estate Planning for Parents with Small Children
For young parents with small children, or maybe a first child on the way, estate planning is likely the last item on the agenda. The need for writing a will is low. Everyone is healthy, the job is stable, the weather is nice and the grass is green. In a perfect world, things would stay that way forever, and even in an imperfect world, things can still be good for many more years; long after your children have the left home and begun families of their own.
Setting Up a Trust - Asset Protection and More
First things first - a trust is a very specific relationship in which one individual, the settlor, who entrusts the management of property and/or additional assets to another individual, known as the trustee.
DIY Estate Planning - What You Miss Out On
Plenty of legal shortcuts have popped up on the Internet in recent years, promoting the benefits of bypassing professional lawyers and opting for DIY legal procedures. One of the biggest markets is, ironically, one of the last most people should be doing themselves.
Estate Planning - Protecting Your Small Business
Estate planning is about more than leaving your belongings to loved ones; it is also about protecting the things you own for future generations. Nowhere is this more evident than in the case of small business owners seeking to keep the business in the family or ensure its survival.
Estate Planning - Protecting Your Future First
More often than not, estate planning is looked at as a way to ease the transition of an individual's assets to the custody of friends and loved ones. This is, indeed, what estate planning can and should be used for, but should it be the first priority of the forward-thinking estate planner?
