Planning is important when providing for your children or grandchildren. But planning for their education has special importance and may have special advantages. This article looks at how a trust can be used to provide for your child or grandchild’s education. The article looks at how a trust can protect those funds. Planning for Education Expenses … [Read more...]
Baby Boomers – It’s Time to Update Your Estate Plan
Right now, the largest generation ever in the United States is starting to retire. The Baby Boomers, born after the end of World War II, are finally reaching their “Golden Years.” If you are a Baby Boomer, that likely means you should take the time to update your existing estate plan if you have not done so in the last several years. An Overland Park estate planning attorney at Parman & Easterday explains why it is important for Baby Boomers to review and revise their estate plans. Why Does … [Read more...]
Tips to Keep Your Parent from Becoming the Victim of Financial Exploitation
If you have a parent who is getting up there in age and is living alone, you undoubtedly worry about their mental and physical health. You may also worry that your parent could become the victim of elder abuse in the form of physical or mental abuse. What you may not be worrying about, however, is the very real risk of financial exploitation. To help you protect your parent, the Overland Park elder law lawyers at Parman & Easterday offer tips to prevent financial abuse. What Is Elder … [Read more...]
Income Tax Basis in Estate Planning
Income tax basis is important in estate planning. This article examines what happens to an asset’s basis when it is gifted. It then examines what happens to the basis of an asset when someone dies with the asset and then bequeaths it to someone. Many people find it surprising that these are treated differently. Income tax basis is an important factor in considering estate planning strategies. Income Tax Basis in Estate Planning … [Read more...]
How Do I Choose the Right Trustee for My Trust?
Although a Last Will and Testament remains the common addition to any estate plan, another very popular estate planning tool is a trust agreement. If you choose to include a trust in your comprehensive estate plan you will need to appoint a Trustee to administer the trust. An Oklahoma City trust attorney at Parman & Easterday offers some suggestions for how to choose the right Trustee for your trust. Trust Basics A trust is a separate legal entity that owns and holds property for the … [Read more...]
When Was the Last Time You Updated Your Beneficiary Designations?
If you have an estate plan in place already, you are ahead of over half the population in the United States. Taking the time to create that plan, however, is only the first step toward protecting everyone and everything that is important to you. You must also update your plan for it to be successful and work as intended. For example, the Oklahoma City estate planning attorneys at Parman & Easterday explain the importance of updating your beneficiary designations. The Importance of Updating … [Read more...]
Make Your Own Plan
Planning is important. If you don’t plan, your assets go pursuant to the state’s default plan, which may be very different from what you want. If you plan, you can be sure your assets go exactly to whom you want and in a manner that can benefit them the most. Make Your Own Plan … [Read more...]
Social Security Retirement Benefits and Your Retirement Plan
In the United States, we start planning for retirement as soon as we start working. At one time, planning for retirement meant nothing more than paying into the Social Security Retirement System. Today, however, those benefits typically only represent a portion of one’s retirement plan. Knowing how the system works and how much to expect in Social Security Retirement benefits, however, remains a crucial component of most retirement plans. Toward that end, the Overland Park retirement planning … [Read more...]
What Are the Different Types of Special Needs Trusts?
For any parent, the desire to protect and provide for a child is a strong motivating factor within their estate plan. For the parent of a child with special needs, protecting and providing for their child takes on a heightened importance because their child may never be completely independent. Achieving those goals, in turn, requires careful estate planning which often includes the inclusion of a special needs trust. For those who are unfamiliar with a these trusts, an Overland Park special … [Read more...]
How Much is Too Much?
This article looks at the question of how much is too much to leave your children. Many people have pledged to give the majority of their wealth to charity. If you won’t leave all your assets to your children, the article provides resources for vetting worthwhile charities. How Much is Too Much? … [Read more...]
