Monthly Archives: October 2011
Planning for Death Can Be a Celebration of Life
Halloween is the one day of the year when not only is it ok to think about death, it’s expected! So it seems like the perfect time to bring up the subject of funerals—specifically your own funeral. It has been said that funerals and memorial services are for those who are left behind after… Read More »
Good News for Retirement Savings in 2012
The past few years have been very hard on retirement savings. As if the devastating impact of the economic crash on retirement assets wasn’t enough, many people weren’t able to sock away nearly as much as they’d like during the lean years that followed the crash. But a new article in U.S. News and… Read More »
Do I Have to Spend All My Money on Nursing Home Care Before I Qualify for Medicaid?
Many of our clients want to make sure they will have Medicaid benefits if they need to move into a nursing home. Because Medicaid requires that its beneficiaries have very low assets, our clients often believe that they must spend all of their assets on nursing home care before they will qualify for Medicaid…. Read More »
Entrepreneurs, Family Business, and Estate Planning
If you’re an entrepreneur, or a small or family business owner, you have more to lose if you don’t have an estate plan. An estate plan help you protect not only your family and your assets, but also the business you’ve spent years (or decades) building. A recent article at Entrepreneur.com, entitled What Entrepreneurs… Read More »
There’s No Excuse for No Nomination of Guardians
Children are a blessing… But being a parent is a difficult job! Most parents of young children already feel overwhelmed with the necessary day to day responsibilities, the last thing they want to do in their down time is think about the difficult and emotional subject of guardianship and estate planning. This explains why,… Read More »
Senior Citizens to Receive a Raise
There is good news today for senior citizens! According to this article in CNN Money, “Social Security recipients will receive a cost of living adjustment of 3.6% starting in January.” This will be the first “raise” recipients have seen in three years, and most welcome the increase. “Many seniors have felt squeezed since banks… Read More »
Early Medicaid Planning Saves Money
Most people don’t like to think about the possibility that they may need to live in a nursing home one day. However, as we grow older nursing home care often becomes a reality. One of the most common ways to pay for nursing home care is through Medicaid. Many of our clients worry that… Read More »
When is the Best Time to Plan Your Estate?
The estate tax laws of the past few years have been so inconsistent that many people are still “waiting for things to even out” before they create (or update) an estate plan. This wait-and-see approach seems perfectly reasonable on the surface; after all, nobody wants to spend hard-earned money creating an estate plan only… Read More »
How Can I Keep Parent Safe From Medical Errors?
It is always a scary time when a parent has to be hospitalized. According to the Aging Parents Authority, medical errors are the 8th leading cause of death in the country. Often, these errors are preventable. If you are a good advocate for your parent, you may be able to protect your parent from… Read More »
Plan Ahead to Avoid Court-Ordered Conservatorship
Young adults are often urged to plan ahead and take control of their future; whether that means getting good grades and planning for college, searching for internships in their career area of interest, or saving money for the day when they are out on their own. Older adults, on the other hand (aside from… Read More »