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I got a phone call from someone the other day asking about a disability trust. The woman told me a long story about how her son was on the autism spectrum and was unable to handle school, life, or his own finances. She took care of him and would always take care of him as long as she was alive, but she was also very concerned about who would care for him after she died. Her son was receiving Medicaid assistance and she was very concerned that she needed to set up a disability trust for her son. As we discussed how we might set up a trust to protect assets for her son, I mentioned that we … [Read more...]
Estate Planning in a Second Marriage: What You Need to Know
I recently had a client call me and request that I set up a trust for their brother. The brother is getting married in about 6 weeks, and the brother wanted to set up a trust to protect his assets from being claimed by his new wife. This was going to be a second marriage for the brother, and the brother wanted to keep the assets he earned during his first marriage separate from his new wife, so that his kids from his first marriage would be able to inherit those assets. I know I could have helped the brother to accomplish what he wanted to do, but I was not able to help him because I am … [Read more...]
Lost in Translation: Avoiding Common Language Pitfalls in Estate Planning
My website designer and web marketing guru likes it when I use what he calls “Olde English,” which usually is something like an older version of a word, or an expression that comes from long ago. He asked me the other day where I learned so many words, and I told him it was likely a combination of things, but that I have read the King James Version of the Bible my entire life, and I did go to law school, where many of the professors had large vocabularies and used lots of words. The King James Version of the Bible was written in a style of the english language that is different than how we … [Read more...]
Just Get Started! Overcoming Procrastination and Fear In Setting Up Your Estate Plan
As I was growing up, my parents subscribed to the daily newspaper, the Fort Collins Coloradoan. I still have some articles clipped from the newspaper that reported on high school basketball games in which I participated. I always read the sports section of the newspaper first, but the comics were the second thing I read. I always liked the “Far Side” by Gary Larson and “Calvin and Hobbes” by Bill Watterson. I think I enjoyed the brand of humor from each comic strip and I found the comics funny - which wasn’t always the case with some other comic strips! I have seen Calvin from the … [Read more...]
Why I Need To Know About Your Situation – So We Can Plan Your Estate Properly!
I recently met with a potential client and asked if they had completed the intake worksheet I use to gather information on their life situation, asset picture, and desired beneficiaries of an estate plan. The potential clients informed me that they were not sure they needed to fill out such an intake worksheet. Filling out the intake helps me gather the necessary information to help you properly set up you estate plan. The importance of answering those questions and giving me the information I need is the topic of today’s blog. Your Information Matters One spouse angrily … [Read more...]
The Benefits of Living Trusts: How They Can Save You Time and Save You Money
I take a lot of calls concerning trusts where people ask me how a trust can save them money. Many of these callers have the mistaken belief that trusts are a magical way to avoid paying taxes and that they can completely eliminate taxes by using a trust. As much as I would like for that to be the case, it simply is not. Taxes do not simply go away because you put your assets into a trust. While there may be some types of tax sheltering trusts, or ways to structure a trust to minimize taxes, there is no magic tax eliminating trust. (On the contrary, income to a trust is taxed at a higher … [Read more...]
Estate Planning For the Average Joe: Simple Strategies to Protect Your Assets
Most people I meet are not rich. Instead, they are normal, hard-working people who have spent a lifetime working to pay off a house, build up some savings, and take care of their family along the way. Some people have been able to save a little more than others along the way, while some have not been able to save much at all, but they got their house paid off, so that is a big win! I hope to pay my house off some day, too, but for right now, I pay my mortgage monthly, just like most people I know. For people who are in the normal category, like most people I meet, planning for huge … [Read more...]
My Reflections After 1 Decade of Mobile Estate Planning In Colorado – And Why I Still Love It!
I didn’t always want to be an estate planning attorney. Growing up, I dreamed of playing in the NBA, making huge shots to win the championship for the hometown Denver Nuggets. That dream never became a reality, mostly based on my not being good enough to play professional basketball, but I also thought I wanted to be just like my dad when I grew up. He was an electrical engineer by education and training, but my attempt to become an engineer in college also did not go as planned. I even went to law school to become a criminal prosecutor. I wanted to put the “bad guys” away, but as I … [Read more...]
Avoiding Common Estate Planning Mistakes for Married Homeowners with Real Estate
As part of my work as an estate planning attorney, I meet a lot of people who have recently had a spouse pass away. I find that most of these people are not at their best when that has happened. Oftentimes, they had been married for several decades, so the loss of a spouse is quite devastating. I understand that is the case, so the first thing I do is offer sympathy and condolences, and then I listen to what the surviving spouse has to say. Often, the surviving spouse is concerned about how to get the house, and everything else, into their name only…and then they will tell me that they … [Read more...]
Avoiding Common Estate Planning Mistakes for People of Moderate Wealth
Most people I know are not rich, but they are not poor, either. Instead, they are somewhere in the middle - not rich, not poor, but decently comfortable - which is probably a result of having such a large middle class in America. I count myself as part of the middle class, and chances are that you are, too. As such, we don’t have the same worries as the three billionaires I have met. They have a whole different set of problems, like how to preserve their money and pass it on to their kids without the government taking a huge cut of their fortunes. Those of us of modest - let’s call it … [Read more...]
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