South Florida Estate Planning News
Recent Posts and Articles
Does Your Will Name an Alternate Beneficiary?
What will happen to your estate if your primary beneficiary does not survive you? If your will does not name an alternate beneficiary, your estate will be divided according to state law. The way the state divides your estate may not agree with your wishes. Your money may go to…
Read More Updating Your Estate Plan When Your Finances Change
Sometimes homes and portfolios lose value or income and investments increase significantly. If this is the case for you, do you need to change your will? If your finances have changed markedly since you wrote your will, you should check your estate plan to see if you need to make…
Read More What Is the Difference Between a Living Will and a Do-Not-Resuscitate Order?
It is a very good idea to create advance directives in order to plan for the possibility that you may one day be unable to make your own medical decisions. In doing so, there can be confusion about the difference between a living will and a “do-not-resuscitate” order (DNR). While…
Read More Discovery of Aretha Franklin’s Handwritten Wills Throws Her Estate Into Turmoil
Legendary singer Aretha Franklin was thought to have died without a will, but the recent discovery of handwritten documents in her home is calling that into question. A representative of her estate has asked a Michigan probate court to determine if any of the documents could be considered a valid…
Read More Warning: you must have a Power of Attorney!
Imagine if tomorrow you were in a car accident or overcome by an illness and unable to communicate… What would your family do? I have sat on the edge of too many hospital and/or rehab beds dealing with distraught family members. You must have someone (with alternates) to call your…
Read More What am I forgetting?
So much is being said in the news about dementia that I thought we should discuss why being occasionally forgetful is not such a concern. To the contrary, our memory may not always be so important. A recent article explains how forgetting is actually useful. By forgetting information that is…
Read More Maximizing Social Security Survivor’s Benefits
Social Security survivor’s benefits provide a safety net to widows and widowers. But to get the most out of the benefit, you need to know the right time to claim. While you can claim survivor’s benefits as early as age 60, if you claim benefits before your full retirement age,…
Read More Medicare Beneficiaries Need to Know the Difference Between a Wellness Visit and a Physical
Medicare covers preventative care services, including an annual wellness visit. But confusing a wellness visit with a physical could be very costly. As part of the Affordable Care Act, Medicare beneficiaries receive a free annual wellness visit. At this visit, your doctor, nurse practitioner or physician assistant will generally do…
Read More How to Deal With Student Loan Debt as You Age
The number of older Americans with student loan debt – either theirs or someone else’s — is growing. Sadly, learning how to deal with this debt is now a fact of life for many seniors heading into retirement. According to a study by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the number…
Read More So, You’ve Been Appointed Trustee of a Trust? Here Are 9 Do’s and 1 Don’t
Whether it’s an honor or a burden (or both), you have been appointed trustee of a trust. What responsibilities have been thrust upon you? How can you successfully carry them out? Here are nine do’s and one don’t to get you started: Do read the trust document. It sets out…
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