Mary frowned at the local newscaster on the television. “I swear I have no idea what he’s talking about with this new tax law. He keeps talking about the estate tax this and the gift tax that. I have no clue what’s up and what’s down.” Her husband, John, replied, “Changes in the tax laws seem to affect everything. And…
The California Legislature, late in 2017, enacted the Building Homes and Jobs Act. The stated purpose of this law is to establish permanent and ongoing source of funding for affordable housing developments. Part of the law that affects those doing estate planning is a $75 recording fee that must “be paid at the time of recording of every real estate…
Reverse mortgages can be very useful for certain clients in that they allow homeowners to tap into their home equity without selling their home even if they don’t have the income to qualify for refinancing. For clients who may be interested in applying for Medi-Cal to assist with nursing home expenses it is important to understand how a reverse mortgage…
On October 8, 2017, a series of fires started burning across our state, destroying over 245,000 acres in Napa, Lake, Sonoma, Mendocino, Butte and Solano Counties. These fires were the costliest group of wildfires in the history of California and the most destructive, causing at least $9.4 billion dollars in insured damages. So we must ask ourselves, can this ever…
After years of marital discord, John and Angie Wakefield finally decided to call it quits. John filed for divorce in California on the grounds of irreconcilable differences, asking for a fair and equitable division of community property, retention of all separate property, and shared custody of their two children. In her response, Angie not only requested child support, she sought…
Upon the death of their respective husbands, Sara and her daughter, Mary, decided to move in together. Since Sara’s home bore no mortgage, Mary sold her home, and placed the proceeds into a retirement account. They agreed to share living expenses, as well as the cost of maintenance and property taxes on the home. They also agreed that when Sara died, Mary would inherit the home.
Chuck Meiers was nestled in his bed when the call came. “Is this Charles Meiers? The owner of the building at Morgan and Main, CM Towers? I believe your business, CM Law, is the sole tenant there?” “Yes?” “Sir, this is the San Valdeos Fire Department. We responded to a fire alarm at your building. There is a lot of black smoke coming out of your roof. It appears your building is on fire.”
Barry Donovan died a happy man. Not only was he joining his late wife, Sarah, in the great beyond, he was also confident his assets would be fairly distributed in accordance with his will. Several days after he had been laid to rest, Barry’s five children—James, John, Sarah, Sally, and Iris—and his surviving siblings—Joseph, Sally, and Sarah—gathered for the reading…
Lost or Undiscovered Assets Pose Problems for the Administration of an Estate
When Jonathan Morgan was named the executor of his father’s estate, he thought he had an easy task ahead of him. After all, his father, Harold, had assured him that he had carefully listed every asset he owned on a sheet of notebook paper attached to his will.
When Minnie Wilson’s father died at the age of 96, she immediately listed his home for sale. Although her father’s estate had not yet been probated, Minnie knew she and her sister, Linda had inherited the house. He stated that in his Last Will and Testament. Since neither sister wanted the home, Minnie thought she would help the process to…