Estate Plans

When we think of estate planning, we often fail to think about establishing any documents for young adults. After all, they probably don’t have an estate. But once your child reaches the age of 18, there are a few things to bear in mind. At 18 your child is considered an adult and therefore you are no longer granted access to their medical records, you are no longer automatically allowed to make medical decisions for them, and you are no longer entitled to remain apprised of their grades in college.

While we never want to consider that our children could ever become incapacitated – and we pray that they won’t – it’s in their best interest to ensure that they have the proper incapacity documents.
Read more . . .

When we think of estate planning, we often fail to think about establishing any documents for young adults. After all, they probably don’t have an estate. But once your child reaches the age of 18, there are a few things to bear in mind. At 18 your child is considered an adult and therefore you are no longer granted access to their medical records, you are no longer automatically allowed to make medical decisions for them, and you are no longer entitled to remain apprised of their grades in college.

While we never want to consider that our children could ever become incapacitated – and we pray that they won’t – it’s in their best interest to ensure that they have the proper incapacity documents.
Read more . . .

When people are thinking about who they wish to give their assets to, they often consider friends and family. But what many fail to consider as an option is charity. A Read more . . .

When a loved one passes away, the number of things to worry about seem endless. But one thing that many people fail to consider is what to do with any prescription drugs (or other controlled substances) that your loved one had. Since there are specific laws for how you must dispose of these substances, it’s important you abide by them. First, you must know what these laws are.

The Controlled Substances Act

There are five categories, referred to as schedules, of controlled substances.
Read more . . .

As they say, age is but a number. Many people of varying ages end up meeting and falling in love every single day. And while the average age gap between married individuals is about 2-4 years, there are still many couples who were born much farther apart. After all, each relationship is unique and depends upon the two people involved. However, although wide age gaps don’t have to negatively impact a relationship, the difference in age shouldn’t be entirely ignored.
Read more . . .

Creating a comprehensive estate plan is extremely important in order to ensure that your loved ones will receive that which you want them to. However, creating an estate plan often isn’t enough to guarantee this.
Read more . . .

There’s no doubt that having kids can be financially taxing. However, it’s important to note that not all children cost you the same amount of money. When you have multiple children, you likely want to ensure that your kids feel as though they are treated fairly and equally. For that reason, you may be thinking about splitting your property to be divided equally among them. But as mentioned, different children have different financial needs at different points in time.
Read more . . .

One of the benefits of purchasing real property is the fact that it will likely appreciate in value over time. But can you imagine having to pay a substantial amount more in taxes just because your home value increases? Here’s the good news: you don’t have to. Under California’s Proposition 13, your appraised property value may only be increased by a small amount annually – unless the ownership of the property changes.

For instance, imagine that you purchased a home back in 1993 for 200,000 that is now worth $1.5 million.
Read more . . .

After experiencing the death of a loved one, you may feel extremely overwhelmed without any sense of what to do next. That’s why it’s so important to have a list of steps that can help you to take care of the legal and financial matters of their estate. Here’s what to do for your loved one’s estate after they pass away.

1. Protect their valuable assets from theft.
Read more . . .

Many young people look forward to turning 18 and entering into adulthood. Once they reach the age of majority, they are now legally able to vote, marry, apply for a credit card, live independently, and make financial and medical decisions. But what happens if someone reaches 18 and is injured in an accident, requiring somebody else to make medical decisions for them? Unfortunately, this is a question that many parents must encounter when their children suffer an injury in an accident.

If a guardian is needed, as a parent you are not automatically granted the right to make these decisions. Heaven forbid you should find yourself in that situation, you would be facing expensive and lengthy court proceedings.
Read more . . .

There’s no doubt that we do more and more online each and every day. So while we tend to think of our physical assets when establishing our estate plans, it’s equally important to consider your digital life.
Read more . . .