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Should a GRAT Be Part of My Estate Plan?

Low interest rates and looming potential tax changes make this a good time for high-net-worth clients to use a special tool to transfer wealth: the grantor-retained annuity trust (GRAT), a strategy to reduce future estate taxes, by transferring assets to beneficiaries without using the lifetime gift tax exclusion.

Posted on: December 22, 2020

What Should I Know about a Living Trust?

A living trust is an estate planning legal document that contains your instructions and authorization for what you want to happen to your assets, when you become disabled or pass away.

Posted on: December 21, 2020

Should a Husband and Wife have Separate Trusts?

In situations where both spouses want the surviving spouse to inherit all the assets, which is often the case, a joint trust can be far less complicated to set up and maintain than separate trusts, with less headaches for the surviving spouse.

Posted on: December 18, 2020

What Do I Need to Know about Roth IRA Conversions?

Many investors took advantage of the pandemic-induced market decline this spring to do big Roth conversions and pay less tax on reduced asset values.

Posted on: December 17, 2020

Is Probate Required If There Is a Surviving Spouse?

A common misconception is that you do not have to probate a will when your spouse dies.

Posted on: December 16, 2020

It’s Time to Stop Procrastinating and Have Your Estate Plan Done

The steady drone of coronavirus news these past nine months has spurred countless older Americans to face a long-procrastinated task: writing—or rewriting—their wills.

Posted on: December 15, 2020

What Happens If You Fail to Submit a Change of Beneficiary Form?

The financial institution is obligated to distribute the CD to the person or entities that otherwise would be entitled to receive it.

Posted on: December 14, 2020

What Do You Do with a Big Inheritance?

Let’s start with the numbers: 10 and 1,000,000,000,000. Over this decade, $1 trillion is expected to change hands through inheritance. The majority of that will end up in the hands of baby boomers. While one study found that the average inheritance was only $50,000, there will be a lot of inheritances in the $1 million-plus range.

Posted on: December 11, 2020

What Changes Have Been Made to Protect Senior Investors?

The revisions to the Sanction Guidelines come after both FINRA and the National Adjudicatory Council (NAC) reviewed the current guidelines and expressed concerns over potential undue influence exercised over senior investors or those investors who may not be able to protect their own interests.

Posted on: December 10, 2020