Tagged: estate planning

…For the younger set, death is perhaps decades away. But that doesn’t mean estate planning should be too. As several legal and financial experts agree, it is important for young individuals and families to establish wills — or at the very least, appoint a guardian for minor children in the event of an unexpected passing.

…An 81 year-old woman who won a whopping $336.4 million Powerball jackpot this week accepted the sum under the name Rainbow Sherbet Trust. She claimed a total of $210 million distributed in one lump payout.

The trust was so named because a family member’s craving for ice cream led to the purchase of the lucky lottery ticket.

The recent and tragic death of Whitney Houston has sparked many conversations about her life and accomplishments. One such conversation is whether or not she had a sufficient estate plan given the size of her estate. Often, people with sizable estates use trusts to control when and how their wealth is distributed.

…Only 45 percent of Americans today have a will. So many Americans and folks in Florida lack estate planning because many people put off estate planning and because many people overcomplicate estate planning decisions to the point where a plan is not created. While estate planning can be complicated, it does not have to be.

…Animal lovers know what it means to say that their pets are part of the family. There is a special bond that is formed between animals and their owners. It doesn’t matter if it’s a dog, a cat, or even a snake. The reality is that these pets are special to their masters and so it should come as no great surprise if accommodations are made for them through proper trust planning.

…When it comes to estate planning in contemplation of that journey everyone must take, it is as important to think about estate administration which will occur after you have gone. Determining where your assets will go and on what terms is not the only consideration that needs to be made. Especially for wealthier individuals, the estate does not simply get divided after your death.

…A recent story of an abandoned property may underscore for Florida readers what can happen if estate planning is avoided. A woman lived in her small 1100-square-foot home for many years. She shared the place with her husband until his death. The woman’s health declined over the ensuing years, and dementia set in.

The importance of estate planning is too often realized after the death of a family member. Even in Palm Beach, Florida, there are many cases of heirs getting the surprise of their lives and wishing they had persuaded their loved one to look into proper estate planning before it became too late.

…People may chuckle whenever they read a headline about a multibillionaire deciding to leave their entire estate to their beloved dog or cat. But the truth is, trust planning for pets is becoming more and more common; particularly in Florida, where there is a significant elder population that enjoys the companionship that a pet can provide.

…Recently, the Internal Revenue Service has begun cracking down on gifts among family members that have not been reported. People who live in Florida and elsewhere are required to report such gifts on a Form 709. This form is known as a United States Gift Tax Return. It must be filed for transfers of property valuing more than $13,000, in spite of the current law that states that the lifetime gift tax exemption limit is $5 million.