One overlooked but essential aspect of estate planning is a strategy to manage and maintain an estate’s assets if the owner loses cognitive functioning and cannot make sound decisions.

Inheriting a house can be a life-changing event with emotional and financial implications. Understanding your options and obligations is critical, whether you sell it, keep it, or rent it out.

If an account is not in the name of the living trust or if the trust is not named as beneficiary on death, probate will be necessary for the beneficiaries to access the account.

It is important to discuss the future and ensure your loved one is well cared for.

A letter of instruction can help you pass your legacy to your loved ones.

Estate planning addresses medical and financial decisions for an incapacitated person, not just where you leave property when you die. For singles, these may be more complex questions to answer.

When creating an estate plan, there are details which seem minor but are actually very important.

Seniors in particular think about marrying with an understandable degree of concern. Here are some steps to take to make relationships easier to navigate and protect your financial future.

Joint property can have unintended consequences to your estate, so it is important to understand the different types.

Parents and grandparents use 529 education savings plans to help with the cost of college expenses. However, they are also a good tool for estate planning.

If you don’t know who your beneficiaries are, then it’s time for a beneficiary designation check. Even if you think you remember, every now and then, they should be checked.

The more planning done in advance, the more likely your loved ones will know what to do. ?Here are 10 key tips for estate planning for you to consider.

A new case out of Tax Court centers on the question of when a “deathbed gift” is complete for federal estate and gift tax purposes.

Those who decide to establish a trust will need to consider the pros and cons of revocable versus irrevocable trusts.

When it comes to estate planning, equal isn’t the same as fair.

As an estate planner, I like life insurance. It provides many benefits in estate planning that are worth considering.

A Living Will and a Do Not Resuscitate Order, known as a DNR, are very different documents, however, many people confuse the two. They both address end of life issues but are used in different settings.

Guardianship often is necessary when an elderly individual loses legal capacity due to dementia, Alzheimer’s or other conditions leading to cognitive decline. In that case a guardian would need to be appointed to manage their assets.

As a general rule, estate planning documents should be kept together in a fire and waterproof container in a location known to and accessible by fiduciaries, and copies of some documents should be given to the fiduciaries in advance.

Studies suggest that a majority of adults do not have an estate plan of any kind, even a will. What happens when those people die?