Trusts and Your Estate Plan

How We Can Help

We help create your Wills, Trusts and and comprehensive Estate Planning solutions tailored to your specific needs and goals. Our dedicated team is here to support you in developing personalized Living Wills, Powers of Attorney, Health Care Directives, and robust Estate Plans.

You're Unique, So Your Plan Should Be Too.

We listen carefully to what you need.  We work closely with you to create a strategy that effectively protects your assets and ensures the future well-being of your family.  With our guidance, we can help you develop and maintain family privacy and fulfillment of your your wishes.

Protecting Your Family And Your Future

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What is a Trust?

A Trust holds your money or property in a special way. It helps you avoid probate and keeps your plan private. It's a strong tool to help you and your family.

A trust functions as a legal arrangement where assets, such as money or property, are placed in a "bucket" to hold your assets.  You create specific instructions in case of incapacity or death as to how your trust assets should be distributed.  It can avoid probate and is a private family matter.  Essentially, it's a strategic tool for protecting your children, wealth management and ensuring that your assets are handled according to your wishes, without interference from the State or Court.

 

 

Effective Trusts & Estate Planning Services

A trust may offer you a variety of advantages, such as:

  • Avoiding Probate
  • Protecting Adult Children from their Potential Mistakes
  • Minimizing or Avoiding Tax Consequences
  • Keeping Financial Information Private
  • Setting Money Aside for Your Children and Grand Children
  • Setting Aside Money for Potential Disability or Long-Term Care
  • Assisting with Supplemental Needs or Special Needs
  • Obtaining Medicaid for yourself or a loved one

Types Of Trusts

  • Revocable Living Trust
  • Living Trust
  • Joint Trust
  • Spendthrift Trust
  • Irrevocable Trust
  • Medicaid Trust
  • Land Trust
  • Testamentary Trust

Are Estate Plans Necessary For Everybody?

Links and Resources

Home Health Care Patients With Chronic Conditions Are Having Trouble Getting Medicare

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

Medicare is supposed to provide up to 35 hours a week of home care to those who qualify, but many Medicare patients with chronic conditions are being wrongly denied such care, according to Kaiser Health News. For a variety of reasons, many home health care agencies are simply telling patients they are not covered. Medicare…

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Costs of Some New Long-Term Care Insurance Policies Going Down in 2018

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

While long-term care insurance costs are up in general, some policies are going down in 2018, according to the 2018 Long Term Care Insurance Price Index, an annual report from the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance (AALTCI), an industry group. A married couple who are both 60 years old would pay an average of…

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What Happens When a Nursing Home Closes?

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

A nursing home closure can be traumatic for residents who are forced to move. While there may not be much that can be done to prevent a closure, residents do have some rights. Moving into a nursing home can be a stressful experience on its own. If that nursing home closes, residents can experience symptoms…

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Have a Happy New Year: Five Resolutions for a Stress-Free 2018

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

Estate planning can be an unsettling process for many people. An estate plan is the strategy you develop at any age, for your life and future, to provide yourself and your family peace of mind, so you can enjoy the years to come worry free. There are a few things that you MUST do to…

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How Will the New Tax Law Affect You?

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

While most of the new tax law – the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act — has to do with reducing the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, some provisions relate to individual taxpayers. Before we get into the details, be aware that almost everything listed below sunsets after 2025, with the tax…

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You Can Give Away More Tax Free in 2018

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

After staying the same for five years, the amount you can give away to any one individual in a particular year without reporting the gift will increase in 2018. The annual gift tax exclusion for 2018 is rising from $14,000 to $15,000. This means that any person who gives away $15,000 or less to any…

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Wealth vs. Health

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

I came across this great article in Forbes’ Wells Fargo Voice from last month written by Alice Lesch Kelly that I want to share: Wealth Vs. Health: Take A Balanced Approach: (Go to: Forbes for original post, mostly reproduced here). We all need balance in our lives and this article provides some great strategies for…

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How Will You Know if Your College- Aged Child is Hurt? HIPAA Laws May Mean You Won’t.

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

A Little Peace of Mind Goes a Long Way. You’ve tried to prepare them in every way you can for college, but how can you make sure your children will be protected when you’re not around? Are they prepared for a medical emergency? It’s hard to believe, but privacy laws can prevent doctors from discussing…

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Use Your Will to Dictate How to Pay Your Debts

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

The main purpose of a will is to direct where your assets will go after you die, but it can also be used to instruct your heirs how to pay your debts. While generally heirs cannot inherit debt, debt can reduce what they receive. Spelling out how debt should be paid can help your heirs.…

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How the Elderly Lose Their Rights!

By Andrea Jakob | December 27, 2019
Estate Planning, Wills And Trusts

Guardians can sell the assets and control the lives of senior citizens without their consent – and reap a profit from it. Everyone must read this great article from the October 9, 2017 issue of the New Yorker by Rachel Aviv.  – Click Here for New Yorker Article

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“Leave A Legacy, Not A Mess”

Emerald Publications – September, 2007

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