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The obituary of an Indiana man who passed away recently has gone viral on the Internet. However, it was not because it showed how unique the man was but because it showed how normal he was.

Most obituaries are somber plain affairs that give a brief overview of the important events in the life of a decedent and their closest family members they now left behind. The obituaries are printed in the local newspaper and normally forgotten fairly quickly by everyone who was not close to the deceased.

Terri Ward’s obituary has earned him some postmortem fame on the Internet....

People who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease do not suddenly forget everything. Instead their memories fade over time leading to some unique situations, as the story of one couple in New Zealand illustrates.

Alzheimer’s works in ways that cannot be predicted. What memories will disappear and when they will disappear can often seem random.

Michael Joyce of New Zealand suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. He had been married to his wife for 38 years and eventually the disease progressed enough that he forgot he was married. In most cases, this would be a cause of deep pain for Joyce’s wife.

It is...

It is not yet known how the IRS will handle things if people make gifts now that will exceed the exemption limits that are scheduled for 2026, when the new exemptions will sunset to previous levels.

The tax cuts passed late last year include provisions that double estate tax and gift tax exemption limits. That is good news on multiple fronts for many people. It means that some of them will no longer have their estates subject to the estate tax and others can gift more than previously to help decrease the size of their estates.

However, the new exemption...

If you have significant wealth tied up in your individual retirement account, it is likely that you may not use it all before you pass away. That makes it important to designate the right beneficiary for the account and, in some cases, that might mean designating a trust.

One of the things people often overlook when they are considering estate planning, is what to do with their retirement accounts. Many people have enormous sums in their IRAs and they will not use them all during their own retirements.

Any funds left over after the account holder passes away, will go...

It is unlikely that you and your spouse will pass away at the same time, so it is important to prepare for what will happen when one of you passes first, to make sure the other has what he or she will need.

One of the last things many elderly couples would prefer to think about is what will happen when one of them outlives the other. However, that will most likely be the case for all couples.

This can be a big issue to deal with emotionally. When it happens, the surviving spouse will not want to have to...