Recent Blog Posts
IRAs, Annuities and Guardianship: Providing for Your Minor Children After You Die
For most parents, making decisions regarding guardianship of their minor children is the most vexing part of estate planning. Not only must you trust the appointed guardian to raise your children as you’d want them raised, but you also need that person to be financially responsible with your children’s inheritance. For example, if you… Read More »
Understanding the Role of Annuities in Estate Planning
Selecting the right type of annuity for yourself is no small feat. Of course, you’ve put in the research and planned with your financial advisors. But, you might still be wondering what happens to those annuity payments upon your death. Let’s start by discussing the role of annuities in estate planning. In addition to… Read More »
Estate Tax Repeal: Planning for the Future Without a Crystal Ball
Creating a will, trust, or any type of estate plan has always involved dealing with an uncertain future. Consider that just 20 years ago in 1997, the estate tax had an astonishing 55% rate with only a $600,000 exemption. Back then, tax-driven estate planning was a mathematical necessity for a large segment of the… Read More »
Planning on Leaving Money to Grandchildren in a Will? Don’t Make These Common Mistakes!
As we build wealth, we naturally desire to pass that financial stability to our offspring. With the grandkids, especially, we often share a special bond that makes us want to provide well for their future. However, that bond can actually turn into a weakness if proper precautions aren’t set in place. If you’re planning… Read More »
How a Lifetime QTIP Trust Protects Your Nest Egg in Second Marriages (and Beyond)
Estate planning for couples in a second or later marriage who have disproportionate estates can be tricky. To avoid second marriage inheritance issues, one solution for allowing the well-to-do spouse to maintain control of their assets but keep their other half happy is the Lifetime QTIP Trust. The Basics of Creating a Lifetime QTIP… Read More »
How Does an IRA Fit Into Your Estate Plan?
When you think of IRAs, you probably think of retirement. But what happens to your IRA money after you’re gone? The answer depends on how you go about creating your estate plan and selecting beneficiaries, and you might be surprised to find out that your money could end up with the wrong people or… Read More »
Legal Planning to Address Alzheimer’s Disease
After procrastinating for several years, you decided to engage an estate planning attorney to prepare your estate plan. Now that the plan is completed, where do you store your Advance Directive /Health Care Power of Attorney, Living Will and HIPPA Authorization so that they are available in an emergency? At McDonald Law Firm, we… Read More »
New Baby? The Importance of Estate Planning for New Parents
Estate planning is often one item that gets pushed back on nearly everyone’s to-do list. The reasons you might be delaying vary: lack of time, not thinking you have enough assets, not knowing how to start, or fear of contemplating death. Whatever the reason for not putting an estate plan together up until now,… Read More »
What to Do After the Death of a Spouse
When a spouse passes away, thinking about “the estate” might be the last thing on your mind. And while it’s necessary to give yourself ample time to process the loss of a love one, it’s also imperative that you speak with your estate planning attorney so that you know what to do after the… Read More »
What is an Estate, and Do I REALLY Need an Estate Plan?
I often get asked – “what is an estate?” You don’t need to have a summer house in Ocean City or a private art collection big enough to rival the Baltimore Museum of Art to consider yourself the owner of an estate. In fact, virtually anyone who owns anything has an “estate” in the… Read More »
