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 during calm times beats the alternative and is a valuable exercise on life in general. Avoid Excessive Taxation By Leaving Stocks to Your Loved Ones, IRAs to Charity Many people have IRAs (traditional and/or Roth). What should be done with those accounts when you pass on? Well, if you designate a...

29 January

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

Posted by Bobby Feisee

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 insure the funds in your IRA will remain protected for your beneficiaries. Check out the article here: Counseling Clients on Their IRA Beneficiary Designation Options: The Impact of the Recent U.S. Supreme Court Case, Clark v. Rameker...

19 January

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Digital Info Just as Important as Traditional Estate Planning Documents

Posted by Bobby Feisee

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 and the online company dictate who can access the decedent’s account. For example, let’s say you have an online checking or savings account. If you live in a state lacking any type of regulation for online estate planning, your loved one may be prevented from accessing the funds in that...

12 May

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

Posted by Bobby Feisee

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 to get divorced. Like many divorcing couples, they reached an agreement for the division of martial property. Ms. Hunsecker gave up her rights in the marital home, and a boat and a trailer the couple owned. Mr. Robinette agreed to make his ex-wife the “alternate payee” of the pension and...

23 August

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DOMA Decision and the Impact on Estate Planning

Posted by Bobby Feisee

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 spouse’s IRA or other qualified retirement plan. (ii.) Transferring wealth, either during life or at death, from one spouse to the other spouse without incurring a transfer tax. (iii.) Deferring estate taxes when a spouse passes away. The Windsor decision does not legalize same-sex marriage and it doesn’t hold that same-sex couples...

22 May

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

Posted by Bobby Feisee

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 leaving more for your loved ones. Another major benefit is that your beneficiaries can make income-tax-free withdrawals during their lifetimes. There are some benefits to this IRA strategy, but it is not fail safe. A potential drawback to a Roth IRA is that the ability to contribute to this type...

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