Do Name Changes Need to Be Reflected in Estate Planning Documents? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

When names change, executing documents with the person’s prior name can become problematic.

For example, what about a daughter who was named as a health care representative by her parents several years ago, who marries and changes her name? Then, to make matters more complicated, add the fact that the couple’s daughter-in-law has the same first name, but a different middle name. That’s the situation presented in the article “Estate Planning: Name changes and the estate plan” from nwi.com.

When a person’s name changes, many documents need to be changed, including items like driver’s licenses, passports, insurance policies, etc. The change of a name isn’t just about the person who created the estate plan but also to their executors, heirs, beneficiaries and those who have been named with certain legal powers through power of attorney (POA) and health care power of attorney.

It’s not an unusual situation, but it does have to be addressed. It’s pretty common to include additional identifiers in the documents. For example, let’s say the will says I leave my house to my daughter Samantha Roberts. If Samantha gets married and changes her last name, it can be reasonably assumed that she can be identified. In some cases, the document may be able to stay the same.

In other instances, the difference will be incorporated through the use of the acronym AKA—Also Known As. That is used when a person’s name is different for some reason. If the deed to a home says Mary Green, but the person’s real name is Mary G. Jones, the term used will be Mary Green A/K/A Mary G. Jones.

Sometimes when a person’s name has changed completely, another acronym is use: N/K/A, or Now Known As. For example, if Jessica A. Gordon marries or divorces and changes her name to Jessica A. Jones, the phrase Jessica A. Gordon N/K/A Jessica A. Jones would be used.

However, in the situation noted above, most attorneys to want to have the documents changed to reflect the name change. First, there are two people in the family with similar names. It is possible that someone could claim that the person wished to name the other person. It may not be a strong case, but challenges have been made over smaller matters.

Second is that the document being discussed is a healthcare designation. Usually when a health care power of attorney form is being used, it’s in an emergency. Would a doctor make a daughter prove that she is who she says she is? It seems unlikely, but the risk of something like that happening is too great. It is much easier to simply have the document updated.

In most matters, when there is a name change, it’s not a big deal. However, in estate planning documents, where there are risks about being able to make decisions in a timely manner or to mitigate the possibility of an estate challenge, a name change to update documents is an ounce of prevention worth a pound of trouble in the future.

Reference: nwi.com (October 20, 2019) “Estate Planning: Name changes and the estate plan”

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

Why Should I Pair my Business Succession and Estate Planning? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

A successful business exit plan can accomplish three important objectives for a business owner: (i) financial security because the business sale or transfer provides income that the owner and owner’s family will need after the owner’s exit; (ii) the right person where the business owner names his or her successor; and (iii) income-tax minimization.

Likewise, a successful estate plan achieves three important personal goals: (i) financial security for the decedent’s heirs; (ii) the decedent (not the state) chooses who receives his or her estate assets; and (iii) estate-tax minimization.

Business owners will realize that the two processes have the same goals. Therefore, they can leverage their time and money and develop their exit plans into the design of their estate plans. The Phoenix Business Journal’s recent article “Which comes first for Arizona business owners: estate planning or exit planning?” explains that considering exit and estate planning together, lets a business owner ask questions to bring their entire picture into focus. Here are some questions to consider:

  1. If a business owner doesn’t leave her business on the planned business exit date, how will she provide her family with the same income stream they would’ve enjoyed if she had?
  2. How can a business owner be certain that her business retains its previously determined value?
  3. Regardless of whether an owner’s exit plan involves transferring part of the business to her children, does her estate plan reflect and implement her wishes, if she doesn’t survive?
  4. If an owner dies before leaving the business, can she be certain that her family will still get the full value of the business?

Another goal of the exit planning process is to protect assets from creditors during an owner’s lifetime and to minimize tax consequences upon a transfer of ownership.

Because planning exits from both business and life are based on the same premises, it can be relatively easy to develop a consistent outcome. There isn’t only one correct answer to the “estate or exit planning” question. A business owner must act on both fronts since a failure to act in either case creates ongoing issues for owners and for their businesses and families.

Reference: Phoenix Business Journal (October 8, 2019) “Which comes first for Arizona business owners: estate planning or exit planning?”

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

What Do I Need to Know About an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

An irrevocable life insurance trust (ILIT) is a trust that can’t be rescinded, amended, or modified after it’s created. ILITs are made with a life insurance policy as the asset owned by the trust. Once the grantor places property or life insurance death benefits into the trust, she can’t alter the terms of the trust or reclaim any of the properties held by it.

As an alternative to designating an individual beneficiary, ILITs offer several legal and financial advantages to heirs. This includes favorable tax treatment, asset protection, and the assurance that the benefits will be used in a manner concurrent with the benefactor’s wishes.

Investopedia’s recent article, “When Is It a Good Idea to Use ILIT Trust?” says that there are several advantages to ILITs, including state tax considerations, the protection of fiscally-careless beneficiaries from squandering their payouts and the prevention of courts and creditors from accessing the assets.

An ILIT is often used to set aside assets for certain purposes, like paying estate taxes, because these assets themselves aren’t taxable. To do this, the selected assets must be moved into the life insurance trust at least three years before they’re used. If you use a qualified estate planning attorney to create this, the death benefits paid to the ILIT won’t be included in the gross estate of the insured. This is different than when life insurance death benefits are paid to an individual because the proceeds are included in the taxable estate of the decedent.

The ILIT also has asset protection for the beneficiaries if they are involved in a lawsuit. That’s because ILITs aren’t considered to be owned by the beneficiaries. This makes it hard for courts to connect the assets to the beneficiary, making them nearly impossible for creditors to access.

There are some drawbacks to using an ILIT, so carefully consider the pros and cons of creating one. Changes to an ILIT can only be made by the beneficiaries. As a result, the benefactor loses control of the assets prior to death.  ILIT assets also are not taxed as part of the estate, but they are taxed as part of the beneficiaries’ estates, leaving a bigger tax burden to their descendants.

Preparing an ILIT is a sophisticated matter with strict guidelines that must be followed to ensure that it conforms with IRS guidelines. Talk with an experienced estate planning attorney to be sure that it is prepared properly, and that it aligns with your overall estate plan.

Reference: Investopedia (August 5, 2019) “When Is It a Good Idea to Use ILIT Trust?”

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

How Can Beneficiary Designations Wreck My Estate Plan? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

It’s not uncommon for the intent of an individual’s will and trust to be overridden by beneficiary designations that weren’t chosen carefully.

Some people think that naming a beneficiary should be a simple job and they try to do it themselves. Others don’t want to bother their attorney with what seems like a straightforward issue. A well-intentioned financial advisor could also complete the change of beneficiary form incorrectly.

Beneficiary designations are often used for life insurance and retirement benefits, but more frequently, they’re also being used for brokerage and bank accounts. People trying to avoid probate may name a “payable on death” beneficiary of an account. However, they don’t know that doing this may undermine their existing estate plan. It’s best to consult with your attorney to make certain that your named beneficiaries are consistent with your estate planning documents.

Wealth Advisor’s “7 Ways That Beneficiary Designations Can Mess Up Your Estate Plan” lists seven issues you need to think about when making your beneficiary designations.

Cash. If your will leaves cash to various people or charities, you need to make certain that sufficient money comes into your estate so your executor can pay these gifts.

Estate tax liability. If assets do pass outside your estate to a named beneficiary, make certain there will be sufficient money in your estate and trust to pay your estate tax lability. If all your assets pass by beneficiary designation, your executor may not have enough money to pay the estate taxes that may be due at your death.

Protect your tax savings. If you have created trusts for estate tax purposes, make sure that sufficient assets flow into your trusts to maximize the estate tax savings. Designating individuals as beneficiaries instead of your trusts may defeat the purpose of your estate tax planning. If there aren’t enough assets in your trust, the estate tax provisions may not work. As a result, your heirs may eventually end up paying more in taxes.

Accurate records. Be sure the information you have on the change of beneficiary form is accurate. This is particularly important if the beneficiary is a trust—the trust name, trustee information and tax identification number all need to be right.

Spouses as beneficiaries. Many people name their spouse as the primary beneficiary of their life insurance policy, followed by their trust as the secondary beneficiary. However, this may defeat your estate planning, especially if you have children from a first marriage, or if you don’t want your spouse to control the assets. If your trust provides for your surviving spouse on your death, he or she will be taken care of from the trust.

No last minute changes. Some people change their beneficiary designations at the last minute because they’re nervous about assets flowing into a trust. This could lead to increased estate tax payments and litigation from heirs who were left out.

Qualified accounts. Don’t name a trust as the beneficiary of qualified accounts, like an IRA, without consulting with your attorney. Trusts that receive such qualified money need to contain special provisions for income tax purposes.

Be sure that your beneficiary designations work with your estate planning rather than against it.

Reference: Wealth Advisor (October 8, 2019) “7 Ways That Beneficiary Designations Can Mess Up Your Estate Plan”

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

How Can I Make Amendments to an Estate Plan? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

If you want to make changes to your estate plan, don’t think you can just scratch out a line or two and add your initials. For most people, it’s not that simple, says the Lake County Record-Bee’s recent article “Amending estate planning documents.” If documents are not amended correctly, the resulting disappointment and costs can add up quickly.

If you live in California, for example, a trust can be amended using the method that is stated in the trust, or alternatively by using a document—but not the will—that is signed both by the settlor or the other person holding the power to revoke the trust and then delivered to the trustee. If the trust states that this method is not acceptable, then it cannot be used.

In a recent case, the deceased settlor made handwritten notes—he crossed out existing trust language and handwrote his revisions to a recently executed amendment to his trust. Then he mailed this document, along with a signed post-it note stuck on the top of the document, to his attorney, requesting that his attorney draft an amendment.

Unfortunately, he died before the new revision could be signed. His close friend, the one he wanted to be the beneficiary of the change, argued that his handwritten comments, known as “interlineations,” were as effective as if his attorney had actually completed the revision and the document had been signed properly. He further argued that the post-it note that had a signature on it, satisfied the requirement for a signature.

The court did not agree, not surprisingly. A trust document may not be changed just by scribbling out a few lines and adding a few new lines without a signature. A post-it note signature is also not a legal document.

Had he signed and dated an attachment affirming each of his specific changes made to the trust, that might have been considered a legally binding amendment to his trust.

A better option would be going to the attorney’s office and having the documents prepared and executed.

What about changes to a will? Changing a will is done either through executing a codicil or creating and executing a new will that revokes the old will. A codicil is executed just the same way as a will: it is signed by the testator with at least two witnesses, although this varies from state to state. Your estate planning attorney will make sure that the law of your state is taken into consideration when preparing your estate plan.

If you live in a state where handwritten or holographic wills are accepted, no witnesses are required and changes to the will can be made by the testator directly onto the original without a new signature or date. Be careful about a will like this. Even if legal, it can lead to estate challenges and family battles.

Speak with an experienced estate planning attorney if you decide that your will needs to be changed. Having the documents properly executed in a timely manner ensures that your wishes will be followed.

Reference: Lake County Record-Bee (October 5, 2019) “Amending estate planning documents.”

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

How to Keep Giving After We Are Gone – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

Americans are a generous people, giving of our time and resources through donations and volunteering. However, according to the article “Charitable conundrum: Why do we give up on giving at death?” from the Austin Business Journal, less than one out of nine individuals include a charitable donation as part of their estate plan.

Why do we stop giving at death? We know that the causes we care about continue to work after we are gone. There are many reasons for this, but perhaps the biggest reason behind his omission is that we tend to avoid estate planning. It’s an emotional challenge, preparing in a very real way to leave the world we enjoy with our loved ones. It’s not as much fun as going fly fishing or playing with the grandchildren.

Here are a few ways to include charitable giving in your estate plan, even when you aren’t having your estate plan created or reviewed.

Charitable beneficiaries. You can make a charity a partial beneficiary of a retirement account. They can be added as a primary beneficiary or as a contingent beneficiary. These changes can be made simply by contacting the custodian of the account and following their instructions for changing beneficiaries. Note that in certain states, spousal approval is required for any beneficiary changes. You can use this opportunity to also update your beneficiaries.

There’s a tax benefit in doing this. Charitable beneficiaries do not have to pay income tax on retirement distributions, although individuals do. Depending on the income level of an individual beneficiary, an heir could lose more than 40% of the inherited retirement account to state and local taxes.

The addition of a charitable beneficiary may restrict the ability for family members to stretch the receipt of retirement assets over time. Check with your estate planning attorney to make sure your good deed does not cause a hardship for family members.

Create a charitable IRA of your own. Another way to use retirement funds for a donation, is to roll some assets out of a main retirement account into a smaller retirement account with only charitable beneficiaries. Instead of consolidating accounts, you are doing the opposite, but for a good reason. This will allow you to manage the amount of money being left to the charity and take required or discretionary distributions from whichever account you choose.

Life insurance and annuities. Both of these vehicles use beneficiary designations, so the same strategy can be used for these accounts. Typically, the annuity must still be in the deferral state—not annuitized—and the life insurance contract must allow for changes to be made to the beneficiaries, which is true for most accounts. Note that life insurance proceeds are non-taxable to individuals and charities and annuity proceeds are generally partially tax-free to individual heirs (amount of basis in the contract).

Talk with your estate planning attorney about the optimal strategies for making charitable giving part of your estate plan. Your situation may differ and there may be other ways to maximize the wealth that is shared with charities and with your family.

Reference: Austin Business Journal (October 2, 2019) “Charitable conundrum: Why do we give up on giving at death?”

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

How to Prevent The Top Six Retirement Planning Mistakes – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

One of the biggest mistakes people make with their retirement, is not realizing what they don’t know, says the Chicago Sun-Times in the article “The 6 biggest retirement mistakes—and how you can avoid them.” By misunderstanding how Social Security works, underestimating life expectancies or failing to plan for big expenses, like long-term care or taxes, people put themselves and their families in financial binds.

These are not the people who make an effort to educate themselves. They are sure they know what’s what—until they realize they don’t. Most people don’t seek out objective advice before they retire. They wing it, hoping things will work out. Often, they don’t.

Retirement is complicated. Here are the top six most common mistakes:

Expecting to die young. If you die young, you have fewer worries about retirement funds. Live a long life and you could easily outlive your retirement savings. One smart move is to wait to collect Social Security as long as possible. Each year you put it off from age 62 to 70, increases your benefit by 7-8 percent.

Ignoring your spouse’s needs. One of you will die first. When that happens, one of your Social Security checks goes away. The survivor will need to get by on only one check. This is why it is vital to maximize the survivor benefit by having the higher earner delay filing for Social Security as long as possible.  Married people who receive a pension, should consider a “joint and survivor” option that lets payments continue for both lives.

Bringing debt into retirement If you’re rich, debt may not be a big deal. You have plenty of income to make payments. Your investments may be earning more than you are paying in interest payments. However, if you are not rich, are you pulling too much from your savings to pay down the debt? This would increase the chances you’ll run out of money. If you take big withdrawals from retirement accounts, it could push you into a higher tax bracket and increase your Medicare premium. Try to get rid of your debt before retiring. However, be careful about tapping retirement accounts to pay off big debts, like a home mortgage.

Neglecting to plan for long-term care. Someone turning 65 today has a 70 percent chance of needing help with daily living tasks, like bathing, eating or dressing. Family and friends may be willing to help, but about half will need long-term care at a cost of $250,000 a year or more. Long-term care insurance is the most obvious solution. However, if you didn’t purchase it when you were healthy, you may need to earmark certain investments, or consider tapping your home equity to pay for this cost.

Thinking you’ll just keep working. About half of retirees report leaving the workforce earlier than they had planned. Most retire because they lose their jobs and cannot find a replacement job or can’t find one at the same income level as their previous job. Others retire because of ill health or the need to stop working to care for a loved one. Working longer can help you make up for not saving enough, but don’t count on it.

Putting off retirement too long. Consider time, health and energy as finite resources. Spend the time and money to speak with professionals, including an estate planning attorney and a financial advisor to determine when you can retire, prepare an estate plan and enjoy retirement.

Reference: Chicago Sun-Times (September 23, 2019) “The 6 biggest retirement mistakes—and how you can avoid them.”

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

Will the IRS Say It’s a Gift, If I Sell My House to my Son at a Great Price? – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

If a parent sells his home to his adult child at half the appraised price, this would be considered a gift, says nj.com in the article “I’m selling my home to my son at a discount. Is it considered a gift?”

The amount of the gift would be the excess of the value subtracted from the amount paid. In this example, if the bank-appraised value of the property is $700,000, and the parent is selling it for $340,000, the $360,000 will be treated as the amount of the gift.

The gift must be reported to the IRS on IRS Form 709 by April of the following year. However, there’s probably no gift tax due.

The gift tax is a tax on the transfer of property by one person to another while receiving nothing, or less than full value, in return. The tax applies whether the donor intends the transfer to be a gift or not.

In this case, because the value is a gift under the available federal annual gift exclusion, when applied, that relieves the son of taxes on the gift. The federal basic exclusion amount will be applicable.

An individual can gift $15,000, adjusted for cost of living over time, to a person each year without reporting the gift. However, if the gift to a single person is more than $15,000, then the IRS Form 709 must be filed to report the gift.

When reporting the gift, the value of the gift is applied against the available federal basic exclusion amount of the donor (the person making the gift). Only if the gift value is more than the available federal basic exclusion amount is there a tax that’s due.

The current federal basic exclusion amount is $11.4 million per person.

Reference: nj.com (September 17, 2019) “I’m selling my home to my son at a discount. Is it considered a gift?”

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

Use A Dynasty Trust to Protect Your Wealth – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

Using an irrevocable trust ensures a far smoother transition of assets than a will and also offers significant tax savings and far more privacy, control and asset protection, begins the article “Dynasty Trusts: Best Way to Protect Family Wealth” from NewsMax.

Just as their name implies, a dynasty trust is king of all trust types. It gives the family the most benefits in all of these areas. Still not convinced? Here are a few reasons why the dynasty trust is the best estate planning strategy for families who want to preserve an estate across many generations.

Most trusts provide for the transfer of assets from one benefactor to the next generation, at most two or three generations. A dynasty trust can last for hundreds of years. This offers tax advantages that are far superior than others.

Under the new tax laws, an individual can gift or bequeath up to $11.4 million during their lifetime, tax free. After that limit, any further transfer of assets are subject to gift and estate taxes. That same transfer limit applies whether assets are left directly via a will or indirectly through a trust. However, in a direct transfer or trust, these assets may be subject to estate taxes multiple times.

If a grantor transfers assets into a dynasty trust, those assets become the property of the trust, not of the grantor or the grantor’s heirs. Because the trust is designed to last many generations, the estate tax is only assessed once, even if the trust grows to be worth many times more than the lifetime exclusion.

Not all states permit the use of dynasty trusts. However, five states do allow them, while six others allow trusts with lifespans of 360 years or more. An experienced estate planning attorney will know if your state permits dynasty trusts and will help you set one up in a state that does allow them if yours does not. Nevada, Ohio and South Dakota provide especially strong asset protection for dynasty trusts.

Because dynasty trusts are passed down from generation to generation, trust assets are not subject to the generation-skipping transfer tax. This tax is notorious for complicating bequeathals to grandchildren and others who are not immediate heirs.

When the dynasty trust is created, the grantor designates a trustee who will manage trust funds. Usually the trustee is a banker or wealth manager, not a trust beneficiary. The grantor can exert as much control as desired over the future of the trust by giving specific instructions for distributions. The trustee may only give distributions for major life events, or each heir may have a lifetime limit on distributions.

With these kinds of safeguards in place, a benefactor can ensure that the family’s wealth extends to many generations. Speak with an estate planning attorney to learn about the laws concerning dynasty trusts in your state and see if your family can obtain the benefits it offers.

Reference: NewsMax (September 16, 2019) “Dynasty Trusts: Best Way to Protect Family Wealth”

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

A Will is the Way to Have Your Wishes Followed – Annapolis and Towson Estate Planning

A will, also known as a last will and testament, is one of three documents that make up the foundation of an estate plan, according to The News Enterprises’ article “To ensure your wishes are followed, prepare a will.”

As any estate planning attorney will tell you, the other two documents are the Power of Attorney and a Health Care Power of Attorney. These three documents all serve different purposes, and work together to protect an individual and their family.

There are a few situations where people may think they don’t need a will, but not having one can create complications for the survivors.

First, when spouses with jointly owned property don’t have a will, it is because they know that when the first spouse dies, the surviving spouse will continue to own the property. However, with no will, the spouse might not be the first person to receive any property that is not jointly owned, like a car.  Even when all property is jointly owned—that means the title or deed to all and any property is in both person’s names –upon the death of the second spouse, a case will have to be brought to court through probate to transfer property to heirs.

Secondly, any individuals with beneficiary designations on accounts transfer to the beneficiaries on the owner’s death, with no court involvement. However, the same does not always work for POD, or payable on death accounts. A POD account only transfers the specific account or asset.

Other types of assets, such as real estate and vehicles not jointly owned, will have to go through probate. If the beneficiary named on any accounts has passed, their share will go into the estate, forcing distribution through probate.

Third, people who do not have a large amount of assets often believe they don’t need to have a will because there isn’t much to transfer. Here’s a problem: with no will, nothing can be transferred without court approval. Let’s say your estate brings a wrongful death lawsuit and wins several hundred thousand dollars in a settlement. The settlement goes to your estate, which now has to go through probate.

Fourth, there is a belief that having a power of attorney means that they can continue to pay the expenses of property and distribute property after the grantor dies. This is not so. A power of attorney expires on the death of the grantor. An agent under a power of attorney has no power after the person dies.

Fifth, if a trust is created to transfer ownership of property outside of the estate, a will is necessary to funnel unfunded property into the trust upon the death of the grantor. Trusts are created individually for any number of purposes. They don’t all hold the same type of assets. Property that is never properly retitled, for instance, is not in the trust. This is a common error in estate planning. A will provides a way for property to get into the trust upon the death of the grantor.

With no will and no estate plan, property may pass to someone you never intended to give your life’s work to. Having a will lets the court know who should receive your property. The laws of your state will be used to determine who gets what in the absence of a will, and most are based on the laws of kinship. Speak with an estate planning attorney to create a will that reflects your wishes and don’t wait to do so. Leaving yourself and your loved ones unprotected by a will is not a welcome legacy for anyone.

Reference: The News Enterprise (September 22, 2019) “To ensure your wishes are followed, prepare a will.”

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