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When it comes time to begin putting together an estate plan, one of the most important things you'll need to do is to choose experienced, capable advisers who can help you get to where you need and want to be. Choosing the "right" estate planning adviser is extremely important because, with any luck, you'll be working with them for what could be a very long time. You worked hard for what you have, and you want to be the one to make sure what you earned goes where you think it will do the most good. That requires a dedicated… Read More

One frequent concern for families when it comes to estate planning comes with the idea of transferring wealth to younger generations, mostly because they are concerned about the ability of those young people to be able to handle the wealth they will one day inherit. As a result, according to several studies, fewer than one-third of wealthy parents have fully disclosed their wealth to their children.   Their perception that their children aren't prepared to handle the wealth is one of the most-cited  non-tax reasons why families often establish what are often extremely large trusts, especially now that estate and gift-transfer… Read More

There is an idea spreading like wildfire in recent years, which could require businesses could eventually be required to have a formal continuity and succession plan in place to do business in most states. It's become such a popular idea that the North American Securities Administrators Association, or NASAA has already created a model rule that would require businesses to develop a plan that dealt with issues such as backup books and records, communications systems and plans for reaching clients, customers, employees and others in case of a major business disruption,   The NASAA model rule is a template published by… Read More

You don't need a highly qualified estate planning attorney to know that you worked hard for your money. If you have a significant amount of assets, whether financial or otherwise, they are often the byproduct of a very focused and very productive life. However, more often these days, affluent clients are looking to leave behind a legacy that is more meaningful and lasting than just their assets. For that, the assistance of a qualified estate planning attorney who understands your needs can be crucial.    Often, we are given the choice between passing on a bunch of money in the… Read More

Not a day goes by when we are not inundated with messages advising us of the importance of retirement planning. We're told to save, save, save, so that we don't run out of money before we run out of life, which is definitely true and a smart way to go. Of course, when you look at the stats, Americans generally aren't doing even that basic thing very often. Too many Americans are planning to depend on Social Security for a living, and that's not a good thing. However, even when we do the right thing when it comes to retirement,… Read More

At a meeting of Georgia estate planners recently, everyone was advised that many things had to change because of tax law and demographic changes in recent years, if the goal was to pass on as much wealth as possible to the next generation. And since that is almost always the goal, well, that means some changes.   For one thing, with the high estate-tax exemption, passing money to the next generation tax-free is less of a focus than ever before. However, that doesn't mean you don't need a plan. In fact, it means you need a plan more than ever, because the… Read More

It may seem difficult to believe now, but it wasn't all that long ago that everything we had was where we could access it; the garage, a hall closet, the trunk of our car, a storage unit, or even a safety deposit box at our local bank. Between bank statements, receipts and unpaid bills, we always left a paper trail, so almost anything could be found and all unfinished business could be discovered and handled.    These days, however, more and more of our lives are conducted online, and that paper trail is less clear-cut, mostly because it's not paper.… Read More

One thing you can say about the people of Georgia, including Atlanta. We really love doing things ourselves, especially when it comes to personal financial matters. And thanks to the Internet, the answers to many questions are literally at our fingertips. Unfortunately, the do-it-yourself trend is not well-suited to setting up an estate plan. There are many reasons for this, but the biggest one has to be that, when it comes time to matter, it's too late to fix any mistakes. When considering an estate plan, the best course of action is to seek out qualified professionals to help you… Read More

When you woke up this morning, did you think about dying, and what might happen after? If you didn't, don't feel bad; most people don't. Most of us don't start thinking about death until someone else dies, especially if it's someone our age or younger, and it hits us; we're mortal. Death is going to happen to us sooner or later. But then, the feeling passes and we get back to not thinking about it anymore. And now you know why most people don't plan for their estate. According to statistics, fewer than half of Americans have even a simple… Read More

While most estate plans take into account life insurance as an element, too often, the multigenerational elements of life insurance are too often overlooked as a crucial asset. Usually, a life insurance policy is taken out on the patriarch of an estate and it is used to create a death benefit that is either earmarked for the estate or one specific beneficiary.   That is starting to be seen as somewhat shortsighted, and many estate planners are recommending that those planning an estate go a little farther and take out policies on children and grandchildren. While many may see such… Read More