The Texas Comptroller’s Office issued a draft copy of its 2012 Texas franchise tax report. The report identifies several new items for 2012, including a $50 late filing penalty. Taxpayers are reminded that the $1 million no tax due threshold is extended to December 31, 2013. As a result of the Consumer Price Index adjustment, the no tax due threshold is now raised to $1,030,000, and the compensation deduction has also been raised to $330,000 per person, for reports due on or after January 1, … [Read more...] about 2012 Texas Franchise Tax Update
Estate Planning Tips for Blended Families
If you are married (or in a marital-like relationship) and have children from a previous relationship, you have a blended family. As you likely have experienced, having a blended family tends to make life more complicated; it also makes your estate planning more complicated, but that’s a good thing. There is much you can do with your estate planning to keep the peace in your blended family. The two most important tips for keeping the peace are: 1. Get it in writing; and, 2. Talk it over. In … [Read more...] about Estate Planning Tips for Blended Families
Estate Planning to Reflect Your Values
Estate planning not only distributes your property and eases the burden of your passing on your loved ones, but it can also pass along your value system to your beneficiaries as well. How? Not only can you leave a legacy of your actions, since those certainly speak louder than words, but you can incorporate those values in your estate plan itself. There are estate planning tools that can be used to pass on your values. Many of these methods involve creating a trust, which allows you more … [Read more...] about Estate Planning to Reflect Your Values
When Does a Beneficiary Receive Their Inheritance?
Choosing your estate’s executor is one of the most important decisions you make during the estate planning process, since this will be the person who will administer your estate when you die. The executor becomes the actual manager of your property during probate, which is the legal process that settles your estate – but at what point will they distribute your property to those you named in your will? During the period of estate administration, the property belongs to the executor and is … [Read more...] about When Does a Beneficiary Receive Their Inheritance?
Five Questions to Ask When Considering Creating Your Own Will
With so many resources available on the internet, you may be tempted to turn to online forms and will kits for your estate planning needs. But ask yourself these five questions first…. 1. Do you have children? Parents with minor children have specific challenges in estate planning – not only in naming a guardian for their children, but in making sure they have tools in place to handle the transfer of property and more. 2. How much property do you own? If you do not own a home or … [Read more...] about Five Questions to Ask When Considering Creating Your Own Will
You Don’t Have to Disinherit Your Child
If you’re child has problems, has become the black sheep of the family, or has other issues, you may think about disinheriting him. However, disinheritance has life-long affects on this child, his siblings, his children (your grandchildren), your spouse, and your family as a whole. You may not realize it, but disinheritance is a shocking and earth-shattering measure. After all, money equals love in our psyches; and, your entire family may be pulled apart. Governmental Assistance Have … [Read more...] about You Don’t Have to Disinherit Your Child
Online Legal Forms are NOT the Same as Getting Advice from an Estate Planning Attorney
Downloading forms from the internet or copying forms from a book at the library are not the same as getting individual advice from an estate planning attorney, no matter what LegalZoom says. LegalZoom, the “big daddy” of online legal forms, is being sued in California for practicing law without a license and deceptive business practices. The case is a class action case, representing approximately 3,000 Californians who have purchased estate planning documents from LegalZoom. In the … [Read more...] about Online Legal Forms are NOT the Same as Getting Advice from an Estate Planning Attorney
Probate Estates Cost More than Non-Probate Estates Because They’re a Pain
Probate estates cost more than non-probate estates because they drive probate attorneys (i.e. estate planning attorneys) bonkers. They’re a pain with many more legal hoops to jump through than settling an estate wherein probate is not required (such as in the case of a fully funded revocable living trust.) First, probate rules are different for each county. There are 24 counties in Maryland, including Baltimore City; therefore, there are 24 different sets of probate rules. There is a lot … [Read more...] about Probate Estates Cost More than Non-Probate Estates Because They’re a Pain
Estate Litigation: Why a Trust may be Disputed
Like contesting a will, disputing a trust is an emotionally charged and complex issue. While trust disputes are not as common as will contests, they do occur and are often based upon the same type of issues. 1. The legality and validity of the trust itself. With the plethora of online tools to create a trust, there can be legal issues that occur with improperly prepared documents as well as documents that may not reflect the true intentions of the person creating the trust. 2. Removal of … [Read more...] about Estate Litigation: Why a Trust may be Disputed
Estate Planning and Asset Protection
Asset protection is an important aspect of completing a comprehensive estate plan, but exactly what is it and what can it do for you? Many consider asset protection to be a strategy used by those in professions that are exposed to litigation, such as a doctor, to protect their assets from potential claims. While this may be one aspect of asset protection, estate planning considers asset protection for other purposes as well, such as: Protecting family assets from claims of creditors of … [Read more...] about Estate Planning and Asset Protection
