In 2012, the American Taxpayer Relief Act (ATRA) established, for the first time, a permanent estate tax and gift tax exemption. The exemption is the amount an individual can pass on at death without paying estate taxes. The legislation set the exemption at $5 million per person, indexed for...
You need more than a Will or Trust to round out your estate plan. Alhambra's Bob Williams lists other Must Have planning documents.
Gifting is a great financial planning tool, especially at the end of the year. Alhambra's Bob Williams goes through the basics.
Celebrities are often placed on a pedestal because of their success and their extraordinary talent—people like Elvis, Aretha Franklin, Prince, Michael Jackson, Howard Hughes, Pablo Picasso, Bob Marley and Jimi Hendrix. They were gifted and they made boat-loads of money doing what they did best.
But making money has no...
Estate planning, for the most part, is about what happens when you die. Who do you want to get your stuff? How and when do you want your estate distributed? Who will be in charge of carrying out your wishes?
Estate plans can even contain instructions for your funeral and...
Over the years I’ve had clients who knew they’d been named in estate planning documents as executor of an estate, and I’ve had others who found out only after a relative died that they had to settle an estate. In most cases, I’d get a call asking, “What do...
No matter your belief structure, or whether you’re reluctant to admit your own mortality, it’s a fact that none of us will live forever. And since no one knows if their demise will happen quickly or be proceeded by a lengthy illness, it’s good to be as prepared as...
You’ve worked hard to get your estate plan in place. The appropriate documents have been created and signed. You’ve named the person who’ll carry out your final wishes. But have you completed the final piece of the estate planning puzzle? If this last piece is in place, it will...
Do I need a will or a trust? That’s the most basic question to begin creating an estate plan. And, let’s face it, you really do want a say in who gets what after your gone. That’s just human nature. Without some kind of legal instructions, you can’t guarantee...
The desire to leave a legacy when you depart
this world has always been the reason to do estate planning. Until now, that’s
been enough. But in today’s world of technology, few people are considering
what to do with their digital assets—Facebook accounts, Twitter accounts, your
business website, online banking. What happens to...