In California, owning assets in a revocable trust enables your family to avoid probate, a court process used to transfer assets to beneficiaries of a will or the decedent’s heirs. One of the main reasons to create a trust is to avoid probate. Unfortunately, more often than we would like, when we assist clients with trust administration after the death…
A power of attorney is an essential part of a comprehensive estate plan. It is common to create your entire estate plan and only think about updating your will and trust as your thoughts on distributing your property may change. However, it is imperative to make sure that you keep other documents up to date as well. Specifically, it is…
Big Three from Episode #060: Finding out what’s important to people – who they are and what they like is key to helping maintain quality of life. Work with someone local, knows the communities, assess clients, and have a physical presence. Who pays for long-term care and senior living communities? We do with our assets that we save, long-term care…
Big Three from Episode #059: Elder mediation can help families reach agreements about legal, financial, and care planning for their aging loved ones and their estate. Even if you think a conflicting party will not agree to mediation, it’s worth getting in touch with a mediator to find ways to engage the parties in communication. The ultimate goal is to…
Big Three from Episode #058: Parents can nominate someone for guardianship, but only the judge can appoint someone.As a parent, make sure your wishes are clearly expressed in your estate plan; otherwise, you will have absolutely no say in the matter.Choose potential guardians that you can trust to make sure things get done. Time-stamped Show Notes: 2:30 – These are…