Estate Planning and Probate Planning – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

The nature of the probate process varies from state to state, and even varies from county to county. However, the nature of the process is the same. A court has to validate a will to ensure that it meets the legal requirements of the state before assets can be distributed, explains the article “Probate workarounds can save heirs time, money” from the Baker City Herald. A typical will in some states can take nine to twelve months, and court shutdowns related to COVID-19 means that the wait could be longer. Probate is also expensive.

When does probate make sense? When a person dies with a lot of debt, probate can be helpful by limiting the amount of time creditors have to make their claims against the estate. If there is not enough to pay everyone, the probate court makes the decision about how much each creditor gets. Without probate, creditors may surface long after assets have been distributed, and depending upon the amount owed, may sue heirs or the executor.

The court supervision provided by probate can be helpful, if there are any concerns about the instructions in the will not being carried out. However, the will and the details of the estate become public, which is bad not just for privacy reasons. If there are any greedy or litigation-happy family members, they will be able to see how assets were distributed. All assets, debts and costs paid by the estate are disclosed, and the court approves each distribution. This much oversight can be protective in some situations.

What is the alternative? Some states have simplified probate for smaller estates, which can reduce the time and cost of probate. However, it varies by state. In Delaware, it is estates worth no more than $30,000, but in Seattle, small means estates valued at $275,000 or less.

These limits do not include assets that go directly to heirs, like accounts with beneficiaries or jointly owned assets. Most retirement funds and life insurance policies have named beneficiaries. The same is often true for bank and investment accounts. Just remember not to name your estate as a beneficiary, which defeats the purpose of having a beneficiary.

Are there any other ways to avoid probate? Here is where trusts come in. Trusts are legal documents that allow you to place your assets into ownership by the trust. A living trust takes effect while you are still alive, and you can be a trustee. Once created, property needs to be transferred into the trust, which requires managing details: changing titles and deeds and account names. This type of trust is revocable, which means you can change it any time. As a trustee, you have complete control over the property. A successor trustee is named to take over, if you die or become incapacitated.

An estate planning attorney will know other legal strategies to avoid probate for part or all of your estate.

Reference: Baker City Herald (July 16, 2020) “Probate workarounds can save heirs time, money”

 

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Can I Add Real Estate Investments in My Will? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

Motley Fool’s recent article entitled “How to Include Real Estate Investments in Your Will” details some options that might make sense for you and your intended beneficiaries.

A living trust. A revocable living trust allows you to transfer any deeds into the trust’s name. While you are still living, you would be the trustee and be able to change the trust in whatever way you wanted. Trusts are a little more costly and time consuming to set up than wills, so you will need to hire an experienced estate planning attorney to help. Once it is done, the trust will let your trustee transfer any trust assets quickly and easily, while avoiding the probate process.

A beneficiary deed. This is also known as a “transfer-on-death deed.” It is a process that involves getting a second deed to each property that you own. The beneficiary deed will not impact your ownership of the property while you are alive, but it will let you to make a specific beneficiary designation for each property in your portfolio. After your death, the individual executing your estate plan will be able to transfer ownership of each asset to its designated beneficiary. However, not all states allow for this method of transferring ownership. Talk to an experienced estate planning attorney about the laws in your state.

Co-ownership. You can also pass along real estate assets without probate, if you co-own the property with your designated beneficiary. You would change the title for the property to list your beneficiary as a joint tenant with right of survivorship. The property will then automatically by law pass directly to your beneficiary when you die. Note that any intended beneficiaries will have an ownership interest in the property from the day you put them on the deed. This means that you will have to consult with them, if you want to sell the property.

Wills and estate plans can feel like a ghoulish topic that requires considerable effort. However, it is worth doing the work now to avoid having your estate go through the probate process once you die. The probate process can be expensive and lengthy. It is even more so, when real estate is involved.

Reference: Motley Fool (June 22, 2020) “How to Include Real Estate Investments in Your Will”

 

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That Last Step: Trust Funding – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

Neglecting to fund trusts is a surprisingly common mistake, and one that can undo the best estate and tax plans. Many people put it on the back burner, then forget about it, says the article “Don’t Overlook Your Trust Funding” from Forbes.

Done properly, trust funding helps avoid probate, provides for you and your family in the event of incapacity and helps save on estate taxes.

Creating a revocable trust gives you control. With a revocable trust, you can make changes to the trust while you are living, including funding. Think of a trust like an empty box—you can put assets in it now, or after you pass. If you transfer assets to the trust now, however, your executor will not have to do it when you die.

Note that if you do not put assets in the trust while you are living, those assets will go through the probate process. While the executor will have the authority to transfer assets, they will have to get court approval. That takes time and costs money. It is best to do it while you are living.

A trust helps if you become incapacitated. You may be managing the trust while you are living, but what happens if you die or become too sick to manage your own affairs? If the trust is funded and a successor trustee has been named, the successor trustee will be able to manage your assets and take care of you and your family. If the successor trustee has control of an empty, unfunded trust, a conservatorship may need to be appointed by the court to oversee assets.

There is a tax benefit to trusts. For married people, trusts are often created that contain provisions for estate tax savings that defer estate taxes until the death of the second spouse. Income is provided to the surviving spouse and access to the principal during their lifetime. The children are usually the ultimate beneficiaries. However, the trust will not work if it is empty.

Depending on where you live, a trust may benefit you with regard to state estate taxes. Putting money in the trust takes it out of your taxable estate. You will need to work with an estate planning attorney to ensure that the assets are properly structured. For instance, if your assets are owned jointly with your spouse, they will not pass into a trust at your death and will not be outside of your taxable estate.

Move the right assets to the right trust. It is very important that any assets you transfer to the trust are aligned with your estate plan. Taxable brokerage accounts, bank accounts and real estate are usually transferred into a trust. Some tangible assets may be transferred into the trust, as well as any stocks from a family business or interests in a limited liability company. Your estate planning attorney, financial advisor and insurance broker should be consulted to avoid making expensive mistakes.

You have worked hard to accumulate assets and protecting them with a trust is a good idea. Just do not forget the final step of funding the trust.

Reference: Forbes (July 13, 2020) “Don’t Overlook Your Trust Funding”

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Should I Borrow from my 401(k) during the Pandemic? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

The major advantage of saving in a 401(k), is that you can have tax-deferred growth on your investments. When you are saving money for the long term, you typically want to leave it alone. However, there are some situations, in which withdrawing money from your 401(k) is acceptable.

Investopedia’s recent article entitled “Hardship Withdrawal vs. 401(k) Loan: What’s the Difference?” says that prior to making a move, you need to understand the financial implications of using your retirement plan early. There are two basic ways to take money out before reaching retirement age.

One option is to take a hardship withdrawal. The IRS says that hardship withdrawals are okay, only when there is an immediate and great financial need. These withdrawals are usually limited to the amount required to satisfy that need. These withdrawals are subject to ordinary income tax and, if you are not yet 59½, there is a 10% early withdrawal penalty, except if you are impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act lets you make a penalty-free COVID-19 related withdrawal or take out a loan from your 401(k) in 2020, with special repayment provisions and tax treatment.

The IRS has a safe harbor exception that lets you automatically meet the heavy-need standard in certain situations, such as for those who must take a hardship withdrawal to pay for medical expenses for themselves, a spouse, or dependents. A hardship withdrawal could also be helpful, if you are in a long period of unemployment and do not have an emergency fund. The IRS waives the penalty if you are unemployed and need to buy health insurance, but you would still owe taxes on the withdrawal. Other situations that are covered by the safe harbor exception include:

  • Tuition, education fees, and room-and-board expenses for the next 12 months of post-secondary school for the employee or the employee’s spouse, children, dependents, or beneficiary.
  • Payments that are required to prevent the eviction of the employee from his or her principal residence or foreclosure on the mortgage on that residence.
  • Funeral expenses for the employee, the employee’s spouse, children, dependents, or beneficiary.
  • Certain expenses to repair damage to the employee’s principal residence.

If you qualify for a Coronavirus-Related Distribution (CRD) from your 401(k) plan during 2020, that distribution will be treated as a safe-harbor distribution that is not subject to a 10% early withdrawal penalty if you are under 59½ but subject to regular income taxes. Some other unique stipulations to this special distribution say that:

  • You can withdraw up to $100,000 or your account balance, whichever is less.
  • You can spread out any taxes over three years.
  • If you pay the funds back into your account within three years, it will be considered a rollover and not taxed.

The IRS has expanded the eligibility for a hardship withdrawal to include having a job start date delayed or a job offer rescinded because of COVID-19 and allow a spouse of an impacted person to make a hardship withdrawal—even if the spouse is still working.

If you are not in such a financial state but still want to take cash from your plan, a 401(k) loan is the other way to go. The IRS says that you can borrow 50% of your vested account balance or $50,000, whichever is less. However, a loan has both pros and cons. You are in effect paying back the money to yourself. That means you are returning it to your retirement account, and that is good. However, if you leave your job and do not repay the loan within a specified period (which was recently extended to the due date of your federal income tax return, instead of the previous 60-to-90 day window, under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act), it is treated as a regular distribution. Therefore, income tax and the early withdrawal penalty would apply.

However, there may be situations in which you might consider a loan. New rules also let you withdraw a loan of up to $100,000 or the amount in your employer-sponsored retirement plan (whichever is less) anytime until September 23, 2020, and delay payments on the loan for up to a year (but the interest will accrue.) If you already have an outstanding loan, the payments can also be deferred for a year.

Consolidating debt. You could use the loan to consolidate high-interest debt, if your credit doesn’t qualify you for a low rate on a personal loan or a debt consolidation loan.

Purchasing a home. It could help when you are planning to buy a home. You could use the money to cover closing costs or hold it in your down-payment savings account for a few months before buying. A 401(k) loan typically must be repaid within five years with at least quarterly payments, but the IRS allows provisions for plan administrators to extend the repayment period longer for those buying a home.

Making an Investment. You could make an investment, like a home as an investment property when you plan to renovate the home and flip it for a profit but need capital to make the purchase.

When You Have A Comfortable Retirement Cushion. If you have been saving regularly for many years with solid investments, you may be ahead of schedule when it comes to hitting your retirement goal. If so, and your job is stable, taking a loan from your 401(k) may not be too bad for your retirement.

There is also an option for 2020 only for taking a 401(k) loan. If you qualify for a CRD, the CARES Act lets you to take a loan of up to $100,000 or the amount in your employer-sponsored retirement plan (whichever is less) until September 23, 2020. You can postpone the payments for up to a year, but interest will accrue. If you already have an outstanding loan, those payments can also be deferred for a year.

If you decide to take a loan or a hardship withdrawal, be certain that you understand the potential tax consequences of doing so.

Reference: Investopedia (June 23, 2020) “Hardship Withdrawal vs. 401(k) Loan: What’s the Difference?”

 

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How Do I Protect an Inheritance from the Tax Man? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning Attorneys

Inheritances are not income for federal tax purposes, whether you inherit cash, investments or property. However, any subsequent earnings on the inherited assets are taxable, unless it comes from a tax-free source. Therefore, you must include the interest income in your reported income.

The Street’s recent article entitled “4 Ways to Protect Your Inheritance from Taxes” explains that any gains when you sell inherited investments or property are usually taxable. However, you can also claim losses on these sales. State taxes on inheritances vary, so ask a qualified estate planning attorney about how it works in your state.

The basis of property in a decedent’s estate is usually the fair market value (FMV) of the property on the date of death. In some cases, however, the executor might choose the alternate valuation date, which is six months after the date of death—this is only available if it will decrease both the gross amount of the estate and the estate tax liability. It may mean a larger inheritance to the beneficiaries.

Any property disposed of or sold within that six-month period is valued on the date of the sale. If the estate is not subject to estate tax, the valuation date is the date of death.

If you are getting an inheritance, you might ask that they create a trust to deal with their assets. A trust lets them pass assets to beneficiaries after death without probate. With a revocable trust, the grantor can remove the assets from the trust, if necessary. However, in an irrevocable trust, the assets are commonly tied up until the grantor dies.

Let us look at some other ideas on the subject of inheritance:

You should also try to minimize retirement account distributions. Inherited retirement assets are not taxable, until they are distributed. Some rules may apply to when the distributions must occur, if the beneficiary is not the surviving spouse. Therefore, if one spouse dies, the surviving spouse usually can take over the IRA as their own. RMDs would start at age 72, just as they would for the surviving spouse’s own IRA. However, if you inherit a retirement account from a person other than your spouse, you can transfer the funds to an inherited IRA in your name. You then have to start taking RMDs the year of or the year after the inheritance, even if you’re not age 72.

You can also give away some of the money. Sometimes it is wise to give some of your inheritance to others. It can assist those in need, and you may offset the taxable gains on your inheritance with the tax deduction you get for donating to a charitable organization. You can also give annual gifts to your beneficiaries, while you are still living. The limit is $15,000 without being subject to gift taxes. This will provide an immediate benefit to your recipients and also reduce the size of your estate. Speak with an estate planning attorney to be sure that you are up to date with the frequent changes to estate tax laws.

Reference: The Street (May 11, 2020) “4 Ways to Protect Your Inheritance from Taxes”

 

Sims & Campbell, LLC – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning Attorneys

How Can We Do Estate Planning in the Pandemic? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

We can see the devastating impact the coronavirus has had on families and the country. However, if we let ourselves dwell on only a few areas of our lives that we can control, the pandemic has given us some estate and financial planning opportunities worth evaluating, says The New Hampshire Business Review’s recent article entitled “Estate planning in a crisis.”

Unified Credit. The unified credit against estate and gift tax is still a valuable estate-reduction tool that will probably be phased out. This credit is the amount that a person can pass to others during life or at death, without generating any estate or gift tax. It is currently $11,580,000 per person. Unless it is extended, on January 1, 2026, this credit will be reduced to about 50% of what it is today (with adjustments for inflation). It may be wise for a married couple to use at least one available unified credit for a current gift. By leveraging a unified credit with advanced planning discount techniques and potentially reduced asset values, it may provide a very valuable “once in a lifetime” opportunity to reduce future estate tax.

Reduced Valuations. For owners of closely-held companies who would like to pass their business to the next generation, there is an opportunity to gift all or part of your business now at a value much less than what it would have been before the pandemic. A lower valuation is a big plus when trying to transfer a business to the next generation with the minimum gift and estate taxes.

Taking Advantage of Low Interest Rates. Today’s low rates make several advanced estate planning “discount” techniques more attractive. This includes grantor retained annuity trusts, charitable lead annuity trusts, intra-family loans and intentionally defective grantor trusts. The discount element that many of these techniques use, is tied to the government’s § 7520 rate, which is linked to the one-month average of the market yields from marketable obligations, like T-bills with maturities of three to nine years. For many of these, the lower the Sect. 7520 rate, the better the discount the technique provides.

Bargain Price Transfers. The reduced value of stock portfolios and other assets, like real estate, may give you a chance to give at reduced value. Gifting at today’s lower values does present an opportunity to efficiently transfer assets from your estate, and also preserve estate tax credits and exclusions.

Reference: New Hampshire Business Review (May 21, 2020) “Estate planning in a crisis”

 

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Social Security and Medicare and the Impact on Retiree Taxes – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

A 70% increase in Medicare premiums to $559 was a complete surprise to a woman who became a single taxpayer when her husband died. She felt like she was being punished for being a widow, she said in a recent article titled “Retirees, Beware These Tax Torpedoes” from Barron’s. With a 2018 modified adjusted gross income of $163,414, a combination of required minimum distributions, Social Security and her husband’s pensions, she went from being in the third-highest Medicare bracket into the second highest Medicare bracket. All it took was $414 dollars to exceed the $163,000 limit.

This is not the only tax trap awaiting unwary retirees. Lower- and middle-income taxpayers get hit by what is commonly referred to as “tax torpedoes,” as rising income during retirement triggers new taxes. That includes Social Security income, which is taxed after reaching a certain limit. The resulting marginal tax rate—as high as 40.8%—is made worse by a Medicare surtax of 0.9% on couples with taxable income exceeding $250,000. Capital gains taxes also increase, as income rises.

It may be too late to make changes for this tax-filing year, even with a three-month extension to July 15. However, there are a few steps that retirees can take to avoid or minimize these taxes for next year. The simplest one: delay spending from one year to the next and be extra careful about taking funds from after-tax accounts.

What hurts most is if you are on the borderline of a bracket. Just one wrong move, like selling a stock or taking a distribution, puts you into the next bracket. You need to plan carefully.

One thing that will not be a concern for 2020 taxes: required minimum distributions. While many retirees get pushed into tax traps because of taking large RMDs, the emergency legislation passed in response to the coronavirus crisis (the CARES Act) eliminated RMDs for this year.

However, the RMDs will be back in 2021, so now is a good time to start thinking about how to avoid any of the typical tax torpedoes. RMDs used to start at age 70½; the SECURE Act changed that to 72.

If you do not need the money from an RMD in 2021, one workaround is to take it as a qualified charitable distribution. That avoids triggering higher taxes or higher future Medicare premiums. The administrator of the tax-deferred account needs to be instructed to make a donation directly to a charity.

An even better strategy: take steps long before Medicare income limits or tax torpedoes hit. If you can, live on after-tax savings, Roth IRA accounts or inherited money. Spend that money first, before tapping into tax-deferred accounts. You can then take advantage of being in a lower tax bracket to convert money from tax-deferred money to convert to Roth IRAs.

Another story of a tax hit that was avoided: a man with an income of about $80,000 prepared to take $4,000 from a tax-deferred account for a vacation. The couple’s normal top tax bracket was 12%, but they hit the income limit on Social Security taxes. The $4,000 in additional income would have caused $3,400 in Social Security income to be taxed, making his marginal tax rate 22.2% instead of 12%. With the help of a good advisor, the couple instead took $3,000 from a Roth IRA and sold a stock position for $1,000, where there were practically no capital gains generated.

Incomes at all levels can be hit by these tax and Medicare torpedoes. A skilled advisor can help protect your retirement and Social Security funds.

Reference: Barron’s (July 6, 2020) “Retirees, Beware These Tax Torpedoes”

 

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There Is a Difference between Probate and Trust Administration – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

Many people get these two things confused. A recent article, “Appreciating the differences between probate and trust administration,” from Lake County News clarifies the distinctions.

Let us start with probate, which is a court-supervised process. To begin the probate process, a legal notice must be published in a newspaper and court appearances are needed. However, to start trust administration, a letter of notice is mailed to the decedent’s heirs and beneficiaries. Trust administration is far more private, which is why many people chose this path.

In the probate process, the last will and testament and any documents in the court file are available to the public. While the general public may not have any specific interest in your will, estranged relatives, relatives you never knew you had, creditors and scammers have easy and completely legal access to this information.

If there is no will, the court documents that are created in intestacy (the heirs inherit according to state law), are also available to anyone who wants to see them.

In trust administration, the only people who can see trust documents are the heirs and beneficiaries.

There are cost differences. In probate, a court filing fee must be paid for each petition. There are also at least two petitions from start to finish in probate, plus the newspaper publication fee. The fees vary, depending upon the jurisdiction. Add to that the attorney’s and personal representative’s fees, which also vary by jurisdiction. Some are on an hourly basis, while others are computed as a sliding scale percentage of the value of the estate under management. For example, each may be paid 4% of the first $100,000, 3% of the next $100,000 and 2% of any excess value of the estate under management. The court also has the discretion to add fees, if the estate is more time consuming and complex than the average estate.

For trust administration, the trustee and the estate planning attorney are typically paid on an hourly basis, or however the attorney sets their fee structure. Expenses are likely to be far lower, since there is no court involvement.

There are similarities between probate and trust administration. Both require that the decedent’s assets be collected, safeguarded, inventoried and appraised for tax and/or distribution purposes. Both also require that the decedent’s creditors be notified, and debts be paid. Tax obligations must be fulfilled, and the debts and administration expenses must be paid. Finally, the decedent’s beneficiaries must be informed about the estate and its administration.

The use of trusts in estate planning can be a means of minimizing taxes and planning for family assets to be passed to future generations in a private and controlled fashion. This is the reason for the popularity of trusts in estate planning.

It should be noted that a higher level of competency—mental comprehension—must be possessed by an individual to execute a trust than to execute a will. A person whose capacity may be questionable because of Alzheimer’s or another illness may not be legally competent enough to execute a trust. Their heirs may face challenges to the estate plan in that case.

Reference: Lake County News (July 4, 2020) “Appreciating the differences between probate and trust administration”

Sims & Campbell, LLC – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning Attorneys

Should I Create an LLC for Estate Planning? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

If you want to transfer assets to your children, grandchildren or other family members but are worried about gift taxes or the weight of estate taxes your beneficiaries will owe upon your death, a LLC can help you control and protect assets during your lifetime, keep assets in the family and lessen taxes owed by you or your family members.

Investopedia’s article entitled “Using an LLC for Estate Planning” explains that a LLC is a legal entity in which its owners (called members) are protected from personal liability in case of debt, lawsuit, or other claims. This shields a member’s personal assets, like a home, automobile, personal bank account or investments.

Creating a family LLC with your children lets you effectively reduce the estate taxes your children would be required to pay on their inheritance. A LLC also lets you distribute that inheritance to your children during your lifetime, without as much in gift taxes. You can also have the ability to maintain control over your assets.

In a family LLC, the parents maintain management of the LLC, and the children or grandchildren hold shares in the LLC’s assets. However, they do not have management or voting rights. This lets the parents purchase, sell, trade, or distribute the LLC’s assets, while the other members are restricted in their ability to sell their LLC shares, withdraw from the company, or transfer their membership in the company. Therefore, the parents keep control over the assets and can protect them from financial decisions made by younger members. Gifts of shares to younger members do come with gift taxes. However, there are significant tax benefits that let you give more, and lower the value of your estate.

As far as tax benefits, if you are the manager of the LLC, and your children are non-managing members, the value of units transferred to them can be discounted quite steeply—frequently up to 40% of their market value—based on the fact that without management rights, LLC units become less marketable.

Your children can now get an advance on their inheritance, but at a lower tax burden than they otherwise would have had to pay on their personal income taxes. The overall value of your estate is reduced, which means that there is an eventual lower estate tax when you die. The ability to discount the value of units transferred to your children, also permits you to give them gifts of discounted LLC units. That lets you to gift beyond the current $15,000 gift limit, without having to pay a gift tax.

You can give significant gifts without gift taxes, and at the same time reduce the value of your estate and lower the eventual estate tax your heirs will face.

Speak to an experienced estate planning attorney about a family LLC, since estate planning is already complex. LLC planning can be even more complex and subject you to heightened IRS scrutiny. The regulations governing LLCs vary from state to state and evolve over time. In short, a family LLC is certainly not for everyone and it appropriately should be vetted thoroughly before creating one.

Reference: Investopedia (Oct. 25, 2019) “Using an LLC for Estate Planning”

 

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Your Estate Plan Needs to Be Customized – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

The only thing worse than having no estate plan, is an estate plan created from a ‘fill-in-the-blank’ form, according to the recent article “Don’t settle for a generic estate plan” from The News-Enterprise. Compare having an estate plan created to buying a home. Before you start packing, you think about the kind of house you want and how much you can spend. You also talk with real estate agents and mortgage brokers to get ready.

Even when you find a house you love, you do not write a check right away. You hire an engineer to inspect the property. You might even bring in contractors for repair estimates. At some point, you contact an insurance agent to learn how much it will cost to protect the house. You rely on professionals, because buying a home is an expensive proposition and you want to be sure it will suit your needs and be a sound investment.

The same process goes for your estate plan. You need the advice of a skilled professional–the estate planning lawyer. Sometimes you want input from trusted family members or friends. There other times when you need the estate planning lawyer to help you get past the emotions that can tangle up an estate plan and anticipate any family dynamics that could become a problem in the future.

An estate planning attorney will also help you to avoid problems you may not anticipate. If the family includes a special needs individual, leaving money to that person could result in their losing government benefits. Giving property to an adult child to try to avoid nursing home costs could backfire, making you ineligible for Medicaid coverage and cause your offspring to have an unexpected tax bill.

Your estate planning lawyer should work with your team of professional advisors, including your financial advisor, accountant and, if you own a business, your business advisor. Think of it this way—you would not ask your real estate agent to do a termite inspection or repair a faulty chimney. Your estate plan needs to be created and updated by a skilled professional: the estate planning lawyer.

Once your estate plan is completed, it is not done yet. Make sure that the people who need to have original documents—like a power of attorney—have original documents or tell them where they can be found when needed. Keep in mind that many financial institutions will only accept their own power of attorney forms, so you may need to include those in your estate plan.

Medical documents, like advance directives and healthcare powers of attorney, should be given to the people you selected to make decisions on your behalf. Make a list of the documents in your estate plan and where they can be found.

Preparing an estate plan is not just signing a series of fill-in-the-blank forms. It is a means of protecting and passing down the estate that you have devoted a lifetime to creating, no matter its size.

Reference: The News-Enterprise (June 23, 2020) “Don’t settle for a generic estate plan”

 

Sims & Campbell, LLC – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning Attorneys