As we approach the end of the year, it is time to make sure all of your retirement and estate planning tools are up to date and working for you. One item that may have slipped many peoples' minds is taking any required IRA withdrawal. It is important to make sure you...
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Ridgewood Estate Planning Blog
The Year Without an Estate Tax Draws to a Close, Part II
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Dec 3, 2010 | Estate Planning, Inheritance And Estate Tax
In our last post, we discussed the estate tax and how it is scheduled to come back into existence in 2011, albeit with rates far higher than when we last saw it. In this post, we wanted to discuss a few of the tools that an individual might use to reduce the impact...
The Year Without an Estate Tax Draws to a Close
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Dec 1, 2010 | Inheritance And Estate Tax
As we have previously discussed, the year of 2010 has been somewhat unusual in that the federal estate tax disappeared completely under legislation that was enacted earlier this decade and was never modified by Congress. While some have wondered if Congress might step...
Estate Planning: Wills
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Nov 23, 2010 | Estate Planning
Unlike trusts, personal wills are subject to probate upon the creator's passing. While probate is often spoken of in a negative sense, there are some benefits to it. Plus, with a comprehensive and detailed will, probate becomes a less frightening proposition - one...
Estate Planning: Deciding Between a Living Trust and a Will
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Nov 23, 2010 | Estate Planning
Over the last three posts, we've discussed the benefits of both living trusts and wills when it comes to estate planning. When it comes to picking one or the other, you really need to think about your needs. What are your assets?Do you have income-generating assets?...
Estate Planning: Living Trusts
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Nov 19, 2010 | Estate Planning
In her article, Price Mueller notes that living trusts are "sometimes touted as an absolute essential." As always, this is more or less true depending on your assets, your goals and how you hope to pass on parts of your estate. Still, there are a great number of...
Estate Planning: Do I Need a Living Trust or a Personal Will?
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Nov 17, 2010 | Estate Planning
On Monday, we discussed the importance of addressing estate planning before the year is up. Whether or not you can make the 2010 deadline, you should still make plans to sit down with an estate-planning attorney early in 2011 to look at your assets and...
2010 is Coming to a Close – Do You Know Where Your Estate Plan is?
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Nov 15, 2010 | Estate Planning
November is here. In fact, November is half gone. In a week or so, we'll be looking at Thanksgiving festivities. Less than a month after that, we'll be cleaning the house for Christmas guests. With 2010 quickly approaching its close, it's time to ask yourself about...
Must-do’s for Individuals Considering an Estate Plan, Part Three
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Nov 9, 2010 | Estate Planning
Last week, we began a series of posts examining the question of estate planning (courtesy of an excellent article by Steven Merkel for Investopedia). On Saturday, we finished with the creation of a will.While this step may seem like the last one, there are actually a...
Must-do’s for Individuals Considering an Estate Plan, Part Two
On Behalf of The Manna Helmy Law Group | Nov 6, 2010 | Estate Planning
Yesterday, we began to discuss a number of essential steps for anyone considering the creation of an estate plan. Today we're going to continue that train of thought, drawing from an excellent article by Steven Merkel, published on SFGate.com.You can find yesterday's...