Margo stormed into her diner, slapped a newspaper down in front of her sister, Irene, and exclaimed, “Look at this! This could happen to us!” Irene glanced at the paper and her face scrunched up in confusion. “What on earth do we have in common with Tom Petty?” She peered up at her sister. “He died, you know.” Margo glared…
Finn slapped the pile of envelopes on the kitchen table and grunted at his wife, Lola. She peered at him over her coffee mug and gestured toward the pile. “What’s this?” “Credit card bills. For Mom and Dad.” Lola frowned. “How is that possible? We have responsibility for their financial affairs. We pay all of their bills. They live in…
Something we see quite often with our older clients is a joint bank account – parent’s money, child added to the account for convenience of the parent. It really can be very convenient, so, despite the list of problems I’ll get to in a minute, for some families in some situations, adding a child to your bank account can be…
“And to Mary Kay Morgan, I bequeath my home and the sum of $250,000,” the lawyer intoned. Sara gazed at her sister, Mary, her eyes filled with questions. “Who the heck is Mary Morgan?” she whispered. Mary shrugged. “No idea. Maybe Uncle Hank had a girlfriend or something?” Sara’s eyes narrowed. “Sounds fishy to me. We all know Uncle Hank…
The population of seniors in the United States is growing rapidly. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau indicates that people 65 and older will make up 20 percent of our country’s population by 2030. Along with this increasing population come increasing reports of elder financial abuse. It is only going to become more and more important for all of us,…
There are a number of situations where a borrower doesn’t qualify for a traditional loan and that’s often true in solving the challenges of real estate lending for irrevocable trusts and probate estates. Conventional lenders are reluctant to lend money to these entities, refusing loan approval until the entity has been dissolved and title converted to an individual interest. Heirs…
Estate Organizers specialize in handling the personal, tangible property items during the process of settling an estate, as well as assisting the professionals, individuals, and families involved. When a client finds us, or an attorney first refers a client to an Estate Organizer, the person has usually just suffered a loss. Not only is this person handling the new, and…
Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) often require new residents to pay an entry fee in exchange for lifetime housing and priority access to healthcare, in addition to a monthly fee. These entry fees can be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. In many cases, a sizable portion of the entry fee may be refundable to the resident if they move…
This is another installment in our very occasional series on estate planning lessons learned from celebrities. By now you all have heard the sad news that Aretha Franklin has died. She left behind a rich legacy of music she recorded for our enjoyment over her long career. But what she apparently did not leave behind is an estate plan. A…