Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.Frequent Flyer miles and other reward points can be valuable resources. Many credit card companies give tens of thousands of miles or points for opening an account and then give miles or points for each purchase. The typical frequent flyer mile is worth 1.5 cents. While this may not sound like much, a balance of 100,000 miles would be worth $1,500. It’s not … [Read more...]
Dead Hand Control: How Much is Too Much?
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.Often, people want to continue to control their beneficiaries after death, just as they’ve done during lifetime. They want to etch in stone the exact circumstances under which distributions should be made to the beneficiaries. Sometimes they think the beneficiary will have to go to the tombstone like a confessional or ATM.The problem is the person doesn’t know … [Read more...]
6 Important Estate Planning Considerations – Part 6: Taxes
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.This is part of a series of 6 blogs on important estate planning considerations. I’ll intersperse these blogs with other timely blogs.The first article in the series showed how an estate plan prepares one for incapacity during life and not just for the distribution of assets at death. The second article in the series focused on how an estate plan should take into … [Read more...]
Planning for the Unexpected
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.Charlotte Fox was an adventurous woman. She was a serious mountain climber and reached the summit of some of the world’s tallest mountains. She became the first American woman to climb three peaks above 8,000 meters, including the world’s tallest peak. She was a member of a climbing party on Mount Everest in 1996 which encountered disaster on their descent. Several … [Read more...]
6 Important Estate Planning Considerations – Part 5: Retirement Assets
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.This is part of a series of 6 blogs on important estate planning considerations. I’ll intersperse these blogs with other timely blogs.The first article in the series showed how an estate plan prepares one for incapacity during life and not just for the distribution of assets at death. The second article in the series focused on how an estate plan should take into … [Read more...]
6 Important Estate Planning Considerations – Part 4: Beneficiary Designations
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.This is part of a series of 6 blogs on important estate planning considerations. I’ll intersperse these blogs with other timely blogs.The first article in the series showed how an estate plan prepares one for incapacity during life and not just for the distribution of assets at death. The second article in the series focused on how an estate plan should take into … [Read more...]
Retirement: It’s not Just About the Money
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.Many factors go into retirement decisions.Often, people are stressed over whether they’ll have enough money or other resources to retire. That’s certainly one factor in retirement. And, given the savings statistics, this might be a factor contributing to retirement stress. According to a survey done in 2013, the mean amount of retirement savings for a family … [Read more...]
6 Important Estate Planning Considerations – Part 3: Your Kids
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.This is part of a series of 6 blogs on important estate planning considerations. I’ll intersperse these blogs with other timely blogs.The first article in the series showed how an estate plan prepares one for incapacity during life and not just for the distribution of assets at death. The second article in the series focused on how an estate plan should take into … [Read more...]
Estate Planning is Too Important to Procrastinate
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.Most of us recognize that estate planning is the loving and responsible thing to do. Yet, only 44% of adult Americans even have so much as a simple Will, according to a Gallup poll.Our world is increasingly complex. It seems our lives are busier than ever. Interestingly, this may not be what leads us to procrastinate. According to Psychology Today, there are three … [Read more...]
6 Important Estate Planning Considerations – Part 2: Long-Term Care
Blog Author: Stephen C. Hartnett, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Director of Education,American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.Often, when people think of “estate planning” they think it’s a task only for what happens after death. While an estate plan certainly deals with the distribution of assets at death, it also is about preparing for the complexities of life.The first article in the series showed how an estate plan prepares one for incapacity during life and not just for the … [Read more...]
