Entries by actualizedevs

Living and Dying as a Senior in a Pandemic

Covid-19 has been devastating for our elders. Our parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles, are suffering terribly from loneliness and fear. I hear about my older clients and family friends saying, I would rather die than live like this. Is the generation that survived the Great Depression, World War Two, the Cold War, and the […]

Checklists – Just In Case

Severe illness is on our minds as virus cases soar. While we may be coping with health care issues, there are also financial concerns and emotional needs. To reduce some of the stress, each of us should organize our estate information for easy access and do some simple planning. Here’s a checklist of items to […]

That Dreaded Conversation

The time has come for that dreaded conversation with your children.  I wish it was the one about sex.  Love in the age of Corona virus means planning for illness and even death. This requires a dedicated discussion. Much has changed in the way we communicate.  In other times, I would suggest that clients use […]

You Didn’t Marry My Money

The Maryland Legislature recently made it more difficult (but not impossible) to disinherit a spouse. When one spouse dies, the survivor has rights to the marital estate. However, the deceased spouse could have owned assets in a way that shielded them from the surviving spouse’s marital rights. The key change made by the new law […]

Who Do You Trust With Your Money? (Part Three – Multiple Agents)

Hopefully, each of us has at least one person we trust to aid us in a time of distress or illness. When it comes to financial matters, we hope that those people are savvy in asset management, record keeping, and tax compliance. Most often when selecting fiduciaries, such as agents under a power of attorney, […]

Who Do You Trust With Your Money? (Part Two – A Cautionary Tale)

The appointment of an agent under a Power of Attorney is a minefield of potential abuses.  Even a trusted person can become untrustworthy. Agents often have a great deal of discretion and the potential for conflicts of interest abound. If a power of attorney is effective when executed, the agent can act on the principal’s […]

Who Do You Trust With Your Money? (Part One – The Effective Date)

“Whom do you trust?” is the most challenging question for people planning their estates. This question arises because we each need to rely upon others for support in times of crisis or illness. We wonder who we trust to be honest, fair, reliable, and diligent. Designating an agent involves careful consideration of when, how, and […]

Your Children Won’t Like This

Congress just changed the law governing IRA distributions. The result is not good for your children. The law change affects when a person passes away how their IRA transfers to a named beneficiary of a younger generation. Under the old law, the beneficiary could stretch the payments from the IRA over their lifetime. The non-spousal […]

What You Can Expect From A Trustee Of A Special Needs Trust

The role of the trustee is laden with distinct and demanding duties. Even more, exacting and demanding than the typical role of the trustee is serving as the trustee of a special needs trust (“SNT”). Estate planners draft with increasing regularity SNTs for clients who may have a family member with a disability. Insurance agents […]

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