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NC and SC Estate Planning and Elder Law Firm
Monday, January 19, 2015
The death of a loved one is a difficult experience no matter the circumstances. It can be especially difficult when a person dies without a will. If a person dies without a will and there are assets that need to be distributed, the estate will be subject to the process of administration instead of probate proceedings.
In this case, the decedent’s heirs can select someone to manage the estate, called an administrator instead of executor. State law will provide who has priority to be appointed as the administrator. Most states’ laws provide that a spouse will have priority and in the event that there is no spouse, the adult children are next in line to serve. However, those that have priority can decline to serve, and the heirs can sign appropriate affidavits or other pleadings to be filed with the court that nominate someone else as the administrator. Once the judge appoints the nominated person they will then have the authority to act and begin estate administration.
In certain circumstances, it may be necessary to change the initially appointed administrator during the administration process. Whether this is advisable depends on many factors. First, the initial administrator will have started the process and will be familiar with what remains to be done. The new administrator will likely be behind in many aspects of the case and may have to review what the prior administrator did. This can cause expenses and delays. Also, it is possible that the attorney representing the initial administrator may not be able to ethically represent the new one, again causing increased expenses and delays. However, if the first administrator is not doing his/her job, the heirs can petition to remove the individual and appoint a new one.
If you are currently involved in a situation where an estate needs to be administered, it is recommended that you speak with an estate planning attorney in your state.
Monday, January 5, 2015
When creating a trust, it is common practice that the person doing the estate planning will name themselves as trustee and will appoint a successor trustee to handle matters once they pass on. If you have been named successor trustee for a person that has died, it is important that you hire a wills, trusts and estates attorney to assist you in carrying out your duties. Although the attorney that originally created the estate plan would most likely be more familiar with the situation, you are not legally required to hire that same attorney. You can hire any attorney that you please in order to determine what your obligations are.
If the decedent had a will it is common that the successor trustee is also named as the executor. Although the role of executor is similar to that of trustee, there are technical differences. If there was a will, you should consult with an attorney to determine if a court probate process will be required to administer the estate. If all assets were titled in the trust prior to the person’s death, or passed by beneficiary designation, such as in the case of life insurance and retirement plan assets (such as 401ks, IRAs, etc.), then a court probate may not be needed. However, if there were accounts or real estate in the person’s name alone that were not covered by the trust, a court probate may be necessary.
During the probate process, all of the deceased person’s assets must be collected and accounted for. This includes all bank accounts, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, investment accounts, retirement assets, life insurance, cars, personal belongings and real estate. All of these assets should be valued and listed on one or more inventories. Depending upon the value of the assets, an estate tax return may be needed. You should be aware of any final expenses, the person’s final income tax returns, and any creditors. Although this process is lengthy, once all of the appropriate steps are taken, the assets will be distributed and the estate will come to a close.
If you have been named a successor trustee, an experienced estate planning attorney can help you through this process and make sure you carry out your legal duties as required. Contact us for a consultation today.
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
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You’ve had an attorney draft your estate planning documents, including your living trust and will. Probate avoidance and tax saving strategies have been implemented. Your documents are signed, notarized and witnessed in accordance with all applicable laws, and are stored in a location known to your chosen executor or estate administrator. Your work is done, right? Not exactly. Although treasure hunts may be fun for youngsters, the fiduciaries of your estate will not find inventorying your assets to be nearly as exciting. When it comes time to settle your affairs, your estate representatives will be charged with the responsibility to gather and manage your assets, pay off debts and taxes, and distribute your assets to your named beneficiaries. This can be a tall order for an outsider who is likely unaware of the full scope of your assets. If your fiduciaries cannot determine exactly what property you own, and its value and location, you are setting up your loved ones for a frustrating treasure hunt that can delay the settlement of your estate and rack up additional estate-related expenses. You may be remembered for the frustration of locating your assets, rather than the gifts made upon your death – not a legacy many wish to leave. Instead, as you are establishing your estate plan take the extra time to record a comprehensive asset inventory and make sure those who will be responsible for settling your estate know where that inventory is stored. Do not presume that everything is handled once you meet with a lawyer and sign your documents. The legal instruments you have gone to the time, trouble and expense to prepare are practically worthless if your assets cannot be identified, located and transferred to your beneficiaries. However, creating a thoughtful asset inventory will aid your loved ones in closing your estate and honoring your memory. Nobody knows better what assets you own than you. And who better than you to know an item’s value, age or location? Your fiduciaries may not have the benefit of tax or registration renewal notices for titled assets, and certainly won’t have copies of the titles or deeds – unless you provide them. It’s a good idea to include copies of the following items with your asset inventory:
- Deeds to real property
- Titles to personal property
- Statements for bank, brokerage, credit card and retirement accounts
- Stock certificates
- Life insurance policy
- Tax notices
For each of the above assets you should also list names and contact information for individuals who can assist with each the underlying assets, such as real estate attorneys, brokers, financial planners and accountants. If your estate includes unique objects or valuable family heirlooms, a professional appraisal can help you plan your estate, and help your representatives settle your estate. If you have any property appraised, include a copy of the report with your asset inventory. Care should be taken to continually update your asset inventory as things change. There will likely be many years between the time your estate plan is created and the day your fiduciaries must step in and settle your estate. Properties may be bought or sold, and these changes should be reflected in your asset inventory on an ongoing basis.
Thursday, December 11, 2014
Wills offer many benefits and are an important part of any estate plan, regardless of how much property you have. Your will can ensure that after death your property will be given to the loved ones you designate. If you have children, a will is necessary to designate a guardian for them. Without a will, the courts and probate laws will decide who inherits your property and who cares for your children. But there are certain things a will cannot accomplish.
A will has no effect on the distribution of certain types of property after your death. For example, if you own property in joint tenancy with another co-owner, your share of that property will automatically belong to the surviving joint tenant. Any contrary will provision would only be effective if all joint tenants died at the same time. If you have named a beneficiary on your life insurance policy, those proceeds will not be subject to the terms of a will and will pass directly to your named beneficiary. Similarly, if you have named a beneficiary on your retirement accounts, including pension plans, individual retirement accounts (IRAs), 401(k) or 403(b) retirement plans, the money will be distributed directly to that named beneficiary when you pass on, regardless of any will provisions. Brokerage accounts, including stocks and bonds, in which you have named a transfer-on-death (TOD) beneficiary will be transferred directly to the named beneficiary. Vehicles may also be titled with a TOD beneficiary, and would therefore transfer to your beneficiary, regardless of any provisions contained in your will. Similar to TODs, bank accounts may have a pay-on-death beneficiary named. The will’s shortcomings are not limited to matters of inheritance. Generally, wills are not as well suited as trusts for putting conditions on a gift such as requiring someone to get married or divorced, or obtain a certain education level, as a prerequisite to inheriting a portion of your estate. A simple will cannot reduce estate taxes the way some kinds of trust plans can. A trust, not a will, is also necessary to arrange for care for a beneficiary who has special needs. A will cannot provide for long-term care arrangements for a loved one. However, a special needs trust can provide financial support for a disabled beneficiary, without risking government disability benefits. If you want to leave your estate to Fido, you’re out of luck in many states. Without a special pet trust, your will may not be able to provide for pets to inherit your assets. You can use your will to leave your pet to someone, and then leave money to that person in trust to help take care of your pet. A will cannot help you avoid probate. Assets left through a will generally must be transferred through a court-supervised probate proceeding, which can take months, or longer, at significant expense to your estate. If it’s probate you want to avoid, consider establishing a living trust to hold your significant assets.
Tuesday, December 2, 2014
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You don’t have to be retired to dip into your Social Security benefits which are available to you as early as age 62. But is the early withdrawal worth the costs? A quick visit to the U.S. Social Security Administration Retirement Planner website can help you figure out just how much money you’ll receive if you withdraw early. The benefits you will collect before reaching the full retirement age of 66 will be less than your full potential amount. The reduction of benefits in early withdrawal is based upon the amount of time you currently are from full retirement age. If you withdraw at the earliest point of age 62, you will receive 25% less than your full benefits. If you were born after 1960, that amount is 30%. At 63, the reduction is around 20%, and it continues to decrease as you approach the age of 66. Withdrawing early also presents a risk if you think there is a chance you may go back to work. Excess earnings may be cause for the Social Security Administration to withhold some benefits. Though a special rule is in existence that withholding cannot be applied for one year during retired months, regardless of yearly earnings, extended working periods can result in decreased benefits. The withheld benefits, however, will be taken into consideration and recalculated once you reach full retirement age. If you are considering withdrawing early from your retirement accounts, it is important to consider both age and your particular benefits. If you are unsure of how much you will receive, you can look to your yearly statement from Social Security. Social Security Statements are sent out to everyone over the age of 25 once a year, and should come in the mail about three months before your birthday. You can also request a copy of the form by phone or the web, or calculate your benefits yourself through programs that are available online at www.ssa.gov/retire. The more you know about your benefits, the easier it will be to make a well-educated decision about when to withdraw. If you can afford to, it’s often worth it to wait. Ideally, if you have enough savings from other sources of income to put off withdrawing until after age 66, you will be rewarded with your full eligible benefits.
Thursday, November 20, 2014
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Imagine if writing a last will and testament were a pre-requisite to graduating from high school. The graduate walks across the stage, hands the completed will to the principal, and gets the diploma in return. It might sound strange because most 18 year olds have little in terms of assets but it’s a good idea for all adults to draft a last will and testament. Graduation from college is another good milestone to use as a reminder to create an estate plan. If you haven’t created a will by the time you marry – or are living with a partner in a committed relationship – then it’s fair to say you are overdue. Think you don’t need an estate plan because you’re broke? Not true. Here are eight excellent reasons for young people to complete a last will and testament. And they have very little to do with money. You are entering the military. Anyone entering the military, at 18 or any other age, should make sure his or her affairs are in order. Even for an 18-year-old, that means creating a will and other basic estate planning documents like a health care directive and powers of attorney. You received an inheritance. You may not think of the inheritance as your asset, especially if it is held in trust for you. But, without an estate plan, the disposition of that money will be a slow and complicated process for your surviving family members. You own an animal. It is common for people to include plans for their pets in their wills. If the unthinkable were to happen and you died unexpectedly, what would happen to your beloved pet? Better to plan ahead for your animals in the event of your death. You can even direct the sale of specific assets, with the proceeds going to your pet’s new guardian for upkeep expenses. You want to protect your family from red tape. If you die without a will, your family will have to take your “estate” (whatever money and possessions you have at the time of your death) through a long court process known as probate. If you had life insurance, for example, your family would not be able to access those funds until the probate process was complete. A couple of basic estate planning documents can keep your estate out of the probate court and get your assets into the hands of your chosen beneficiaries much more quickly. You have social media accounts. Many people spend a great deal of time online, conversing with friends, storing important photos and documents and even managing finances. Without instructions from you, will your family know what to do with your Facebook account, your LinkedIn account, and so forth? You want to give money or possessions to friends or charities. When someone dies without a will, there are laws that dictate who will receive any assets. These recipients will include immediate family members like parents, siblings, and a spouse. If you want to give assets to friends or to a charity, you must protect your wishes with a will. You care about what happens to you if you are in a coma or persistent vegetative state. We all see the stories on the news – ugly fights within families over the prostrate bodies of critically ill children or siblings or spouses. When you write your will, write a health care directive (also called a living will) and a financial power of attorney as well. This is especially important if you have a life partner to whom you are not married so they can make decisions on your behalf
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
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Properly drafted estate planning documents are integral to the success of your legacy and end-of-life wishes. Iron-clad estate planning documents, written by a knowledgeable attorney can make the difference between the success and failure of having your wishes carried out. However, there’s more to estate planning than paperwork. For your wishes to have the best chance of being honored, it is important to carefully choose the people who will carry them out. Your estate plan can assign different responsibilities to different people. The person who you most trust to raise your children, for example, may not be the person you’d designate to make health care decisions on your behalf, if you are incapacitated. Before naming individuals to carry out your various estate and incapacity planning wishes, you should carefully consider the requirements of each role and the attributes which each individual has that will allow him or her to perform the duties effectively. Executor. You name the executor, (also known as a personal representative), in your will. This person is responsible for carrying out all the terms of your will and guiding your will through probate, if necessary. The executor usually works closely with a probate or estate administration attorney, especially in situations where will contests arise and your estate becomes involved in litigation. You may appoint co-executors, or name a professional – such as a lawyer or accountant – as the co-executor. Health care proxy. Your health care proxy is the person you name to make medical decisions for you in the event you are incapacitated and unable to do so yourself. In addition to naming a health care proxy (sometimes called a health care power of attorney), most people also create a living will (or health care directive), in which they directly state their wishes for medical care and end-of-life care in the event of incapacity. When choosing a health care proxy, select a person who you know understands your wishes regarding medical care, and who you trust to carry out those wishes, even if other family members disagree. You should also consider individuals who have close geographic proximity to you as well as persons you believe can make difficult decisions under pressure. Power of attorney. A financial power of attorney (or simply power of attorney) is different from a health care power of attorney in that it gives another person the authority to act on your behalf in financial matters including banking, investments and taxes. You can limit the areas in which the person may act, or you may grant unlimited authority. A power of attorney may also be limited for a specific time, or it may be a durable power of attorney, in which case it will continue even after the onset of incapacity (until your death). A power of attorney can take effect immediately or “spring” into effect in the event of incapacity. Guardians. If you have minor children or other dependents (disabled adult children or other disabled adults for whom you are the named guardian), then your estate plan should name a person or persons to take over the parental role in the event of your death. The guardian may also have control over any assets that you leave directly to your minor children or other dependents. If you create a trust for the benefit of your minor children, then the trust’s trustee(s) will have control over those assets and their distribution. Important considerations include age of the guardian, compatibility with his or her personality and moral values as well as the extent and quality of the existing relationship with your children. Trustee. If you place any assets in trust as part of your estate plan, then you must designate one or more trustees, who will act as the legal owners of the trust. If you do not wish to appoint someone you know personally, you may appoint a corporate trustee – often a bank – to play this role. Corporate trustees are often an excellent choice, since they are financial professionals and neutral, objective third parties. Its important you select individuals who are not only trustworthy but also organized, diligent and detail oriented.
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
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For most people, finally establishing an estate plan is a big step that they have undertaken after years of delay. A second step is making decisions regarding the executor, trustees, beneficiaries, funeral costs and debt, and a third step is actually completing the will. There is, however, a fourth step that is often skipped: placing the original will and other critical documents in a place where it can be found when it is needed. As far as wills are concerned, this step is more important than you might think, for two reasons:
- If your will can’t be found upon your death then, legally, you will have passed away intestate, i.e. without a will.
- If your loved ones can only locate a photocopy of your will, chances are the photocopy will be ruled invalid by the courts. This is because the courts assume that, if an original will can’t be located, the willmaker destroyed it with the intention of revoking it.
Options for Storing the Original Copy of Your Will Because an original will is usually needed by the probate court, it makes sense to store it in a strategic location. Common locations recommended by estate planning attorneys include:
- A fireproof safe or lock box
- Stored at the local probate court, if such service is provided.
- A safety deposit box in a bank
There are advantages to each choice. For many, a fireproof safe is simplest: it’s in the home, doesn’t need to leave the house and can be altered and replaced with maximum convenience. The probate court makes sense because it is the place where the last will and testament may end up when you pass away. A safety deposit box also makes sense, especially if you already have one for which you’re paying. Just make sure that your executor can access it. By making sure that your original will is safe and can be found when needed, you don’t just ensure that it can be used when the allocation of your assets and debt occurs. You also ensure that disputes, confusion and disappointment don’t occur years after your death; while uncommon, in some cases, by the time the will has been discovered, the assets of the decedent have long been distributed according to intestacy laws and not the decedent’s will. Intestacy laws are essentially the “default will” that the state establishes for individuals who do not have their own estate plan. You’ve taken the trouble to protect your assets and loved ones by creating an estate plan. Don’t leave its discovery to chance. Ensure that your executor or trustee can easily and reliably find it when it comes time to put it into effect.
Friday, October 31, 2014
Join Monk Law Firm on Saturday Nov. 1st at the Give Hope Gala in Charlotte, NC. Give Hope Global is an amazing non-profit organization that supports orphans in Haiti. We are proud to donate a Simple Estate Package which includes: Will (with testamentary trust for children), Power of Attorney, Health Care Power of Attorney, HIPAA, Living Will and Personal Property Memorandum for the silent auction. Visit their website to make a bid today!
Thursday, October 30, 2014
![](/global_pictures/October2014047(250x166)4648.jpg) Happy Halloween from Monk Law Firm's Princess Hannah, Fireman James and Hoot of a good time Liam.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
You spend your whole life building your legacy but sadly, that is not always enough. Without careful estate tax planning, much of it could be lost to taxes or misdirected. While a will or living trust is essential for dividing your estate as you wish, an estate tax plan ensures you pass on as much of your legacy as possible.
Understanding estate tax laws
For the past decade, estate tax laws have been a sort of political football with significant changes occurring every few years. The good news is that the 2013 tax act made the basic $5 million estate tax exemption “permanent,” but at a higher rate of 40%, though the law continues to adjust the exemption level for inflation. With this adjustment, the 2013 exclusion is $5.25 million per person ($10.5 million per married couple). The law also retained exclusion “portability” which means that if one spouse dies in 2013, the surviving spouse may pass on the unused portion of the deceased spouse’s exclusion. This portability is not automatic, however. The unused portion needs to be transferred by the executor to the surviving spouse, and a special tax return must be filed within nine months. The surviving spouse does not have to pay estate taxes at this time, they only become due after both spouses have died.
Optimizing your estate plan
One way to maximize the amount you can pass on is through annual gifting while you are alive. An individual is allowed to give $14,000 each year to another individual, tax-free. If you give more than that, it will reduce your basic lifetime exclusion. So, if you give a child $50,000 this year, your basic $5.25 million exclusion will be reduced by $36,000 at the time of your death. You can gift as much as your full $5.25 million exclusion before incurring taxes, although doing so would “exhaust” your estate tax exemption at death. Gift tax rates were raised to 40% in 2013 and are paid by the giver, not the recipient.
An experienced estate tax planning attorney can help minimize potential gift and estate taxes by:
- Identifying taxable assets
- Transforming your wishes into a will or living trust
- Keeping you apprised of federal and state tax law changes
- Establishing an annual gifting plan
- Creating family and charitable trusts
- Setting up IRA charitable rollovers
- Setting up 529 education savings plans
- Helping you create a succession plan for your family business
It’s never pleasant to consider the end of your life, but planning for it will help ensure that the things you care about are cared for. It is one of the greatest gifts you can give your loved ones.
Monk Law Firm, PLLC assists clients throughout Charlotte, Rock Hill, Fort Mill and the surrounding areas.
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