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It is possible that with a little bit of reading and perhaps downloading a few forms, that you can create an estate plan for yourself. It is usually a mistake to do so.

Most people would prefer to avoid paying for the services of an attorney, if they can avoid doing so. This is true even in estate planning.

Many people think they have straightforward desires regarding who should get their assets after they pass away. As a result, they do a little bit of research and may download a form or two to guide them. After a few hours, they have something that constitutes an estate plan and think they have saved money.

The problem is that estates...

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. Ward was an army veteran living in Indiana, who recently passed away....

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 not easy for family members when patients forget...

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 limits are scheduled to sunset in 2026 and revert back to $5.5 million for...

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 to the designated beneficiary on the account. Because this can amount to...

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 worry about finances. USA Today discusses this issue in "How to prepare financially for being a widow/widower."{: target="_blank"}

Here...

With increased estate tax exemptions, many people wonder what it will mean for estate planning and whether there will be less need for them to plan. One way to figure out the answers is to look at what estate planning attorneys expect to happen.

The recently passed tax changes include a doubling of the estate tax exemptions. This has made many well-off families happy, but it has also left many of them wondering how they should respond to the changes.

People are not quite sure whether they still need to make estate plans now and if so, how their plans might be different than before. There is no single answer since it depends on individual...

If you get divorced, it is important that you revisit your estate plan to make sure your ex-spouse is excluded, if desired, and that what he or she would have received is distributed to someone else.

The U.S. has a high divorce rate. Nearly half of all marriages end in divorce.

The rates are even higher for second and third marriages. One of the issues concerning the high divorce rate is that people get distracted by the divorce itself and then fail to update their estate planning afterwards.

Ex-spouses are routinely left in many estate plans.

If an ex-spouse is mentioned in a will that was executed before the divorce, then in most...

The doubling of the estate tax exemption limits recently signed into law, has important implications for many estate plans. It is a good idea to consider what you might want to do as a result.

Many people had hoped that President Trump's tax reform bill would lead to the end of the estate tax. That proved to be too expensive for the government to include in the bill. However, the estate tax exemption limits were doubled.

While that is not as good as many wealthy families had hoped, it is still a benefit for some wealthy people. There are some things to think through before changing your estate plan as a result of the new law, as Forbes...

Preserving family wealth between generations requires proper estate planning. However, that may not be enough. It is also important to make sure that younger generations know what to do with the wealth.

Throughout its history, the U.S. has had many extremely wealthy citizens. Some of those citizens left vast sums to their heirs and some of those families are still wealthy and known today.

However, for a country that has had so many wealthy citizens, the U.S. seemingly has very few lasting dynasties.

We rarely hear about the descendants of wealthy people who do not have any of that wealth left.

Why?

While transferring intergenerational...

President Trump signed tax cuts into law recently. Researchers are finding minor changes that people were unaware of before the bill was passed.

One of the consequences of recent tax reform, was that it did not give people very much time to anticipate all of the changes to the tax code before the bill was voted on, passed and signed into law. The massive bill was amended repeatedly in the last few days. As a result, very few people had the opportunity to read and comment on it.

While most of the big ticket items in the bill were known quickly after it passed, there are other smaller provisions experts are still finding in the...

Getting long-term care insurance for future nursing home expenses can be exceedingly difficult and expensive. A recent announcement by GE helps to explain why.

Nursing home costs continue to increase, as more and more people need the facilities for longer and longer periods of time. This is the result of an aging population with increasing lifespans and medical science's ability to keep elderly people alive longer, even when they are very ill.

People do not have many options to pay for their nursing home care. The government will pay for it, if all other assets of the patient have been depleted. That means that people have to pay for it...

If you have recently gotten a divorce, you most likely do not want your ex-spouse to inherit your property. Without good estate planning, the ex-spouse might still get control of the property, if you have minor children together.

Immediately after getting a divorce, most people are sick of dealing with attorneys. The last thing most of them want to do is to voluntarily have more meetings with attorneys to make changes to their estate plans.

However, it may be vital that they do so.

Getting a divorce is a significant event that should cause everyone to revisit their estate plans to make sure their ex-spouse does not gain control of any of...

It is important to make plans for what will happen to your pets after you pass away.

For many Americans pets are an essential and important part of their lives and families. Some pets today are treated as well as if not better than the humans in the family.

People will go to great lengths to make sure their pets have the best food and health care. There are even day spas for pets in many places.

However, as much as people care for their pets during their lives, most fail to think about and plan for what will happen to those very same pets after the owners pass away.

That lack of planning may mean that the pets are taken to a shelter...

Ben Franklin planned his estate carefully. He left behind a will that might be a good lesson.

Ben Franklin was famous for many things he did during his lifetime.

He is credited with writing almanacs, discovering electricity, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America and more.

One of the things that is not discussed as much, is what Franklin did in his will, through which he had to confront a problem many people face when planning their estates.

The problem?

What to do if you want someone to be able to use your property during life, but ensure that when that person passes away, the property goes to someone else of your...

When you start planning your estate, it is a good idea to ask yourself a few questions that will help you clarify your thinking.

If you have never engaged in the estate planning process, then getting started can seem somewhat overwhelming. There are many decisions you need to make concerning how your assets will be distributed.

Hiring a good estate planning attorney is essential to getting a good plan. The attorney can help guide you into making good decisions.

However, you do not need to wait until you see the attorney for the first time before making some key decisions.

Asking yourself the right questions can get you started.

Market...

Variation in prices can be attributed to number of choices and the choices people make.

Funeral services in the U.S. cost, on average, thousands of dollars with services, burial fees, coffins and flowers, as well as prices that vary by states, according to the Cronkite News in "Arizonians pay less for funeral services compared to rest of nation."{: target="_blank"}

The average cost of funeral services in Arizona and in nearby states are much cheaper than they are elsewhere. The primary reason for this is not because funeral homes charge that much less. It is because cremation is much more popular in those states, than in the rest of the...

Very few wills are actually contested in probate court. However, the chances of a legal battle over a will go up, when the estate is valuable. It also goes up, if family members do not get along for other reasons.

One of the main reasons that people hire estate planning attorneys is to prevent their families from fighting over their estates after they pass away. People want the attorneys to create estate plans that, if not completely unchallengeable, are at least airtight enough to minimize the possibility of challenges.

The reality is that for any random person, the overall likelihood of a will being contested are relatively small.

As...

The new tax law has left an important estate tax issue up to the IRS to determine. That is what to do if the estate tax exemption reverts to its previous level and the deceased has gifted more than that amount.

The recently passed tax reform bill required Congress to make several compromises because of budget limitations in the amount the bill could add to the deficit and avoid a possible filibuster by Democratic senators.

Those limitations prevented a complete elimination of the estate tax, as had long been proposed by Republicans in government.

The estate tax exemption has now been doubled. However, this could not be made permanent and...

Charitable remainder trusts can be a great vehicle for elderly people to downsize without paying a steep tax penalty. They can also be very dangerous, if not handled correctly.

One problem many older Americans have, is that they would like to retire, move or just downsize. However, the tax consequences of doing so can be difficult to get around.

An elderly couple that has lived in the same home for decades would have to pay capital gains taxes, if they sell the home. This could make it more difficult to sell the home and have the money to move somewhere else.

One way around this problem is to create a charitable remainder trust.

This is...

Federal estate tax gets the attention, but some states need focus as far as estate planning is concerned.

There are some states that still levy an estate tax and can be expensive places to pass away, according to Forbes in "Where Not To Die in 2018."{: target="_blank"}

Some states tie their exemption level to the federal government's, such as Hawaii and Maine. Those states get an automatic tax break.

Some other states have already passed legislation to do the same thing and other states have recently repealed their estate taxes.

Oregon and Massachusetts are tied for the lowest estate tax exemptions in the country at $1 million. Oregon's...

Congressional Republicans reached a final deal on a tax reform bill. They kept the estate tax in place, with an important modification.

One of the bigger issues with the Republican plans to reform federal taxes had to do with the estate tax. Most Republicans would like to see it done away with entirely.

The initial bill passed in the House of Representatives did just that, by phasing the estate tax out over a period of time. However, the Senate version of the bill was more cautious and just changed the exemption limit, while keeping the estate tax in place.

This was necessary because for procedural reasons, tax reform could only increase...

Many people who do not have to pay the federal estate tax are unaware that there is still a benefit to the spousal election that might benefit them in the future.

When talking about the estate tax exemption limit, estate planning attorneys often discuss two different numbers. They mention the individual exemption amount and the married couple exemption amount, which is double the individual number.

The reason they do this, is because of the spousal election.

When one spouse passes away, the surviving spouse can take what is called a spousal election which will give them the married couple's exemption limit when they pass away. It can be...

Some decisions to bequeath certain assets to people cannot be undone by creating a new will and changing who gets the assets.

One of the oldest principles of estate planning law is that people can always change their minds about what to do in their wills. All they need to do if they want to do something different, is create a new will reflecting their new desires.

It is best to destroy any copies of the old will. However, that is not strictly necessary. There are some times when people cannot change their minds about their wills.

One example is when someone has entered into a valid contract to leave something specific to someone else.

A...

The stock markets might have risen to record highs this year, but few Americans own enough stock to take advantage of it.

After Republicans passed their tax reform bill, some Republicans are indicating that they might be turning to entitlement reforms next.

Markets have risen to record highs this year. It seems like Americans have more in their retirement accounts than ever before.

However, while the total amount of money in retirement accounts might be at all-time highs, that money is heavily concentrated in a small percentage of the population, as Think Advisor discusses in "Trump Asks 'How's Your 401(k)?' But Most Voters Don't Have...