Category Archives: Estate Planning
What Is Pre-Mortem Probate?
Of the things that people worry about missing out on after they die, probate is not usually one of them. You might wish that you could listen in on your own funeral and hear people express the appreciation for you that they were never able to put into words when you were alive. You… Read More »
Assets That Don’t Belong in a Trust
When an estate planning lawyer advises you to establish a trust, you might be surprised. The popular image of trusts is that only wealthy people have them, and you certainly do not feel wealthy. The reason you are consulting an estate planning lawyer is that you are worried about not having enough money, not… Read More »
Give Your Tax-Free Gifts Now, Before the Year Ends
It’s hard to find much to be cheerful about at this time of year, especially in 2025. Yes, you are a year older and worse off financially than you ever thought you would be at this age, but that happens every year, and by now, you have enough wisdom to chalk it up to… Read More »
Managing Without Long-Term Care Insurance
No estate plan is complete without documents that will enable you to access the care you want in the event that you suffer long-term health. We never know when our health will take a turn for the worse, and healthcare costs, from hospitalizations to home health aide services to prescription drugs to nursing homes,… Read More »
Estate Taxes and Inheritance Taxes in Maryland
There are plenty of reasons to love Maryland. Its weather lasts long enough in each season for you to enjoy them but not for the weather to become tiresome; we get enough snowfalls to allow for a few snowy selfies, but not enough that you feel you are enduring month after month of dreary… Read More »
An Old Year’s Resolution for Your Estate Plan
The fact that you are thinking about your estate plan can make you feel old, but not nearly as old as you feel when you tell your younger coworkers or family members that you have made a New Year’s Resolution. Young people are so used to uncertainty that they are incredulous that an adult… Read More »
What To Know About Whole Life Insurance
Estate planning often begins with wishful thinking. You look at the websites of financial planners who advise seniors on their finances, and you daydream about all the knee replacement-friendly hiking trips you can take and all the affordable 55+ communities where you might buy a modestly sized house. Once you get to the stage… Read More »
Back to School Estate Planning
Once the school year starts, the feeling is anticlimactic, and you don’t know what to do with all this free time. Take a few moments, before the major school assignments start coming due, and work on your estate plan. Planning for the worst helps you stop sweating the small stuff, at least temporarily. If… Read More »
Getting Through Probate Painlessly
No one wants a messy probate case, but chances are that you will not have to deal with one. Almost anyone who is wealthy enough that their estate would have to pay taxes can afford to appoint a lawyer as personal representative of their estate; you don’t stay wealthy until you die unless you… Read More »
Are Pet Trusts Necessary?
Your estate plan shows how much you care, even if you do not have a lot of property to leave to the beneficiaries of your estate. Simply by writing a medical advance directive indicating your wishes about medical treatment during your final illness, you are saving your family untold amounts of stress. If you… Read More »
