Three Key Estate Planning Strategies You Can’t Overlook

A great estate plan requires periodic updating, extensive analysis, and following these three important strategies. “Stress Test” Your Estate Plan Through Various Scenarios One of the best ways to determine your plan is thorough and ready for virtually any scenario is to actually test it out in a variety of hypotheticals. What will happen if you suddenly become incapacitated? What will happen if your child, or children, pre-decease you? What rights, if any, will your child’s ex-spouse have to your estate’s assets? Putting your estate plan through these “stress” variables should not stress you out! Our view is going through these scenarios...

29 January

0 Comments

Sticky

Bobby’s Article on IRA Beneficiary Designation Options Published in the Journal of Financial Service Professionals

Posted by KarenLewis

in News

Bobby Feisee co-authored an article which was published in the January 2015 edition of the Journal of Financial Service Professionals (Vol. 69, Issue 1, pp. 57-62). The article explores how IRA beneficiary designations have been altered in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Clark v. Rameker. In a unanimous 9-0 decision, the SCOTUS decided that inherited IRAs are not “retirement funds” within the meaning of federal bankruptcy law. This means they are available to satisfy creditors’ claims. Bobby recommends financial advisers help their clients with re-examining any outright beneficiary designations for their retirement accounts. The goal is to...

19 January

0 Comments

Sticky

Digital Info Just as Important as Traditional Estate Planning Documents

Posted by KarenLewis

in Bobby's Blog

Having your proverbial “digital estate” in order is just as important in today’s society as having a well-drafted Durable Power of Attorney, Advanced Medical Directive, etc. If you pass away without a document providing your username and password to your online accounts, your loved ones may be prohibited from accessing those accounts, resulting in unnecessary delay and frustration in getting your assets distributed and online accounts closed. Only seven states have laws addressing online estate planning (including Virginia). However, that means 43 states have no laws or regulations regarding digital estate planning and allow the service contract between the deceased...

12 May

0 Comments

Sticky

Attack of the Ex-Spouse: Maryland Court Allows Former Wife to Receive 50 Percent of Deceased Ex-Spouse’s Pension Benefits

Posted by KarenLewis

in Current Events

The Maryland case Robinette v. Hunsecker, 66 A. 3d 1093 (Md. Ct. App. 2013) is a prime example of why it is so important to review your estate plan, and all related documents, on a regular basis. An estate plan that is locked away in a safe deposit box may actually wind up creating frustration and turmoil for your loved ones. In Robinette, Luan Hunsecker (“Ms. Hunsecker”) married a man named Roger Robinette (“Mr. Robinette”). During their marriage, Mr. Robinette participated in a pension plan with his employer. After nearly seventeen years of marriage, Ms. Hunsecker and Mr. Robinette decided...

23 August

0 Comments

Sticky

DOMA Decision and the Impact on Estate Planning

Posted by KarenLewis

in Current Events

In a groundbreaking U.S. Supreme Court decision, United States v. Windsor, the Supreme Court decided that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (i.e. DOMA) was unconstitutional. To read a summary of the decision, check out this page. Section 3 defined “marriage” to be between a man and a woman for Federal benefits. The result of Windsor is that same-sex married couples will now be treated as spouses for purposes of numerous Federal statutes. With regards to estate planning benefits, the following benefits will now be afforded to same-sex couples. (i.) Deferring income taxes where a spouse inherits a deceased...

22 May

0 Comments

Sticky

Estate Planning Tip: Utilizing a Roth IRA to Stretch Out Tax Benefits

Posted by KarenLewis

in Bobby's Blog

A Roth IRA offers distinctive retirement-savings benefits since under current law, investments in this type of account can grow tax-deferred and withdrawals are tax-free. It also gives you the ability to avoid early distribution penalties on some withdrawals. If you have a significant balance in your IRA and don’t plan to tap that balance during your lifetime, you may want to consider converting your IRA to a Roth IRA since it can benefit your estate. How? Well, the contributions made to a Roth IRA have the potential to grow larger than it otherwise might under traditional distribution rules, which means you’re...

Three Key Estate Planning Strategies You Can’t Overlook

Under 35? You Still Need an Estate Plan

Bobby’s Article on IRA Beneficiary Designation Options Published in the Journal of Financial Service Professionals

Digital Info Just as Important as Traditional Estate Planning Documents

Attack of the Ex-Spouse: Maryland Court Allows Former Wife to Receive 50 Percent of Deceased Ex-Spouse’s Pension Benefits

DOMA Decision and the Impact on Estate Planning

Estate Planning Tip: Utilizing a Roth IRA to Stretch Out Tax Benefits