Passing along some useful information this time. Our friends over at reviews.com have recently done a write-up on life insurance, and reviewed a few major providers, which can be found here: https://www.reviews.com/life-insurance/
Estate Planning For 2018: What You Need To Know
When the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act first passed, it left many of us going into the new year with little knowledge about the details. It has been picked apart by experts now and a clearer picture is starting to form. Some of the bigger changes are on the income tax side, providing corporations and individuals with potentially lower income taxes. To be noted is that they left the rates on estates and trusts almost identical to the previous high level. This disparity will make people rethink some year-to-year decisions to reinvest or distribute income from ongoing trusts and estates.
A Place For Mom: Connecting Families To Senior Living
A quick update for anyone searching for information on helping seniors. A Place For Mom is a national company that helps with senior care and living facility placement. If you are looking for help for yourself or a loved one in the San Jose area.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act; a brief update
As many have probably heard, Congress just passed its long awaited tax reform bill, known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. More complete summaries of the updates can be found around the internet. The one which we have found easiest to read through is provided by Northern Trust Company.
Desert Caballeros Ride
Hidden somewhere in the middle of this is the firm founder Rich Dayton. He attends the annual Desert Caballeros Ride, who just published their pictures from this year's trip. Since Congress hasn't decided to shed light on what the future tax laws will be yet, we decided to take it easy and let you know what we do in our spare time.
Recognizing Elder Abuse and Knowing Your Rights
An extra blog post for this month, courtesy of our friends over at the National Council for Aging Care, also known as Aging in Place. They published a great article discussing the often overlooked topic of elder abuse.
Terry Pratchett and the Steamroller: a lesson in unusual requests
Terry Pratchett, famed author of the 'Discworld' series of satirical fantasy novels, passed back in 2015. He may have been a citizen of the United Kingdom, but watching his estate teaches a good lesson on how proper planning is done. He had a will which specifically handled is multi-million-pound estate. However, more importantly, he talked his last wishes out with his loved ones to ensure even his most unusual requests are honored.
Estate Planning in the Digital Age
At this point, most people have had the odd experience of realizing one of your Facebook friends is deceased, and one of his or her loved ones are posting on that account. More concerning is realizing who may have access to your online accounts with private information, such as those associated with your bank or hospital. This is why planning for digital estates is a topic of increasing importance.
Active Ownership: Planning for Business Owners
This is a general reminder that ownership of a closely held or family business should be integrated in your estate plan. While sophisticated planning can be done to maximize estate and gift tax treatment, even those who do not have estate tax concerns can benefit from pre-planning. In situations where the owner is the manager of a business, providing the correct authorizations for agents and trustees to act on your behalf can save your business legal costs and delays associated with an important manager/owner falling ill or worse.
Will Your Evil Sister-in-Law Raise Your Children?
You may be surprised to find some of the most important parts of an estate plan have nothing to do with money. Planning includes naming who is in control of everything you own and everything you are responsible for. This means your parental rights over your children are also something that should be handled with your plan.
