Estate Planning

Life is expensive. Money is necessary to help us in our daily lives. That’s why if you become disabled or pass away, your loved one may need to be able to access funds to continue to pay for necessities. But what can you do if all of the money is in your name or in your trust? That’s why cash availability planning is so important.

What Are Your Options?

Cash availability planning is the process of ensuring that your loved one has access to cash when you are disabled or deceased.
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When most people think about creating an estate plan, they are focused on the distribution of their assets when they pass away. But when you are unmarried and have no children – or even no surviving family members – you may be wondering about the importance of still having a comprehensive estate plan. It’s important to understand that estate planning is as important for single Californians as it is for those who are not single. But how should it be different?

Differences to Consider

There are many differences between single and non-single people when it comes to creating a comprehensive estate plan. One of the most prevalent things is the need for a power of attorney.
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For most people, debt is an unfortunate part of life. But is it also a part of death? You may be wondering what happens to your debt after you pass away and whether it will impact your family. Here’s what you should know.

When you die, all of your assets become a part of your estate and your estate becomes responsible for your debts. The amount of time that creditors have to make a claim against the estate in California is about a year.

Divorce and remarriage are common and can certainly be for the best. However, blended families can make estate planning a bit more difficult. That’s why it’s so important to talk to your loved ones if you are thinking about getting married again.
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There are a lot of things to consider when it comes to estate planning. While many people consider creating a will or a trust, they don’t often know of the possibility to create a Letter of Last Instruction.

A will and a trust are legal documents that discuss how and to whom an individual wants their assets to be distributed after they pass.
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While sometimes a bit tough to think about, it’s really important to understand Advance Health Care Directives and end-of-life decisions. After all, everyone should be entitled to live their life as they choose, right down to the very end. There are two options when it comes to end-of-life decisions: to prolong life or not to prolong life.
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When a loved one passes away and you find that you are a beneficiary of his or her estate, you may not know whether you need an attorney or not. While there may already be an attorney involved, he or she is likely acting in the interest of either the executor (if there is a will) or the trustee (if there is a trust). So when should you consider hiring an estate planning attorney to represent you personally? Here are 5 reasons.
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You’ve probably heard of the importance of estate planning, but you still may not know its real purpose. It is certainly true that estate planning is used to ensure that your loved ones receive your assets and are cared for after you pass away.

When you die intestate (without a Will), you have no control over who will receive what.
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When someone is living with a disability that makes them unable to sustain gainful employment, Social Security Income (SSI), Medicaid (known as MediCal in California), and other government benefits can often help to put a roof over their head and food on their table. But in order to qualify for these benefits, the individual must make under a certain amount of money and must not have enough money to independently support them. Money sitting in their bank account can be counted against their ability to qualify.

Due to this situation, it essentially works to prevent people with special needs from building savings whether gained through inheritance, gifts or earned income. This begs the question of how can they save money without jeopardizing these benefits?

Special Needs Trust

One option is to create a Read more . . .

You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t been at least slightly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. For many Americans, it has greatly injured their livelihoods and financial health. As we move forward in light of COVID-19, it’s important to determine whether any of your estate planning documents must be revised based upon how your estate value has been impacted.

Therefore it’s important that you speak with a knowledgeable and Read more . . .

As our economy continues to suffer as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, millions of Americans are experiencing severe loss of income as well as mounting debt. For Baby Boomers and older Americans who have planned and saved for retirement, this was far from expected. Instead of leaving their children with large assets, it’s likely that many older Americans will leave their children and other heirs with bills when they pass. Does this mean that younger generations will be stuck with even more debt? Luckily, that’s probably not the case.

The last thing that you want to concern yourself with when mourning the loss of a parent or close loved one and tying up loose ends is to have to worry about how you’re going to be able to pay for any debts they did not pay off.
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