Month: January 2020
Are there witness requirements for a South Carolina will?
Wills are important state planning documents. For some people, a will might be the only document that they establish. For others, their wills create the foundation that they build upon with other paperwork. Will provide instructions about what happens with someone's...
How often do estate plans need to be updated?
Estate planning is a so-called “living process,” as estate planning documentation benefits from periodic review and updates to better ensure that it remains aligned with your life circumstances, financial situation and goals. As a general guideline, reviewing your...
Irrevocable trusts play an important role in estate planning
One of the most important tasks an adult has to handle is creating an estate plan. This sets a plan for your assets so a transfer from you to your loved ones can happen after you die. There are several options for laying out who gets what. One of these is an...
Making charity a part of your estate plan
Estate planning largely revolves around leaving assets to your loved ones upon your death. Nonetheless, there is much more to it than this. Charity plays a huge part in the lives of many people. If this is the case for you, then you may want to make charitable giving...
What are the advantages of a POD account?
A payable-on-death (POD) account is a bank account that has a beneficiary designation. Essentially, you have the ability to use a Totten trust – the technical name for the necessary paperwork – and transform your personal bank account into a POD account if you would...
Do most people already have an estate plan?
If you haven’t made an estate plan yet, you may think that you’re falling behind. Perhaps you assume that most people already have a plan in place, and you’re the one who needs to get caught back up. In fact, maybe this assumption is why you are now considering making...
Mistakes to avoid when creating an estate plan
Estate planning is an important part of financial management. Having an estate plan in place means you can have confidence your assets will be distributed based on your wishes after you pass away. However, many people make mistakes during the estate planning process...
What to look for in an estate executor
Your estate executor is the person who will be in charge of reading your estate planning documents and following the instructions that you have listed within. Say that you have two adult children and you want to divide your financial assets between both of them. The...
Estate planning isn’t just about money
For many people, the main focus of estate planning is money. They have amassed a certain amount of wealth and they want to make a plan to pass that wealth to the next generation. They can write a will, put money in a trust, use a payable-on-death (POD) account and...
What’s the difference between executors and administrators?
When someone passes on, everything they own is then referred to as their estate. An estate is the sum total of property, debt and assets the decedent amassed throughout their life. Since they’re no longer around, someone has to manage their estate, and this is where...