New York’s 529 College Savings Program
Saving for College as Part of Your Estate Plan Each state offers its own program and most programs are available to residents of any state. So a resident of Illinois ...
Providing for Your Children’s Education in an Estate Plan
Consider All Your Options Many parents and grandparents set up a trust to provide for their children’s or grandchildren’s education. Such trusts typically provide instructions to the trustee to preserve ...
Avoiding Abatement
Don’t Give What You Don’t Have If you leave beneficiaries specific dollar amounts in your will or trust documents, you may be creating a situation where the estate cannot afford ...
What is a Life Estate?
Life Estate Protects Loved One When a person gives a life estate to a beneficiary, the beneficiary is entitled to possess and occupy property (usually real estate) for the length ...
Use Caution in Planning Ahead
Trust Instructions It is tempting when creating an estate plan to try to plan for the future by setting specific instructions for preserving assets. For example a trust may give ...
Irrevocable Trusts and Creating Limits in Estate Planning
Restrictions in Estate Planning It’s a fairly common movie theme: a child is required to get married before he can receive his huge inheritance. The parents write something in their ...
Forgiving Debts in an Estate Plan
Forgiving Debts One gift which is commonly overlooked is the gift of forgiving a debt. An estate plan designates who will receive assets and property, but it can also designate ...
Estate Planning for Your Relationship
Protecting the Person Closest to You Many couples over age fifty who have been divorced or widowed are choosing not to marry again; rather, they are choosing to live together ...
What Can an Attorney-in-Fact Do?
Guardians Have Limited Power A guardian or attorney-in-fact (through a power of attorney document) may be appointed to take care of financial matters if the principal becomes incapacitated. Appointing someone ...