The Final Steps to Complete Your Durable Power of Attorney for Finances

05 Monday Feb 2018

Posted by Robert Dowling in Record Keeping

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Agent, Durable Power of Attorney for Finances, Effective Immediately, estate, Estate Administration, Estate Plan, Executor, Financial Institutions, Grant Power, Land Records Office, Notarized Durable Power of Attorney, Notarized Durable Power of Attorney for Finances, Notary, Notary Stamp, Real Estate, Record, Register, Springing Durable Power of Attorney for Finances, witnesses

final steps

After drafting your Durable Power of Attorney for Finances, there are essential final steps to completing the document. Accordingly, these final steps include the following:

Validate the document.
Decide what to do with the document.

Although both steps are fairly simple to complete, state law determines how to complete each step. Additionally, as mentioned in the article Additional Considerations for Your Durable Power of Attorney for Finances, deciding what to do with the document depends on the type of document you chose to complete. Regardless, after completing the final steps, you will have an effective Durable Power of Attorney for Finances.

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Considerations for Choosing Your Health Care Proxy

11 Monday Dec 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Planning Tips

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Agent, Alternate Proxy, Durable Power of Attorney for Finances, estate, Estate Plan, Executor, Health Care Proxy, Health Professional, Proxy, Will

Choosing your health care proxy is another crucial step in building a solid estate plan. As explained in the article A Coherent Estate Plan Consists of More Than Just a Will, the health care proxy is a document that names a person to render medical decisions for you while incapacitated. Unlike naming an agent for finances, choosing your health care proxy deserves more scrutiny. Since your health care proxy could be handling complex medical options and opinions, you need to ensure that the proxy is up to the task. Therefore, choosing your health care proxy deserves serious consideration.

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Considerations for Choosing an Agent for Your Durable Power of Attorney for Finances

04 Monday Dec 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Planning Tips

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Agent, Common Estates, Durable Power of Attorney for Finances, estate, Estate Administration, Estate Plan, Executor, Financial Authority, Grant Authority, Power of Attorney

Choosing an agent for your Durable Power of Attorney for Finances deserves as much consideration as choosing the right executor. As described in the article A Coherent Estate Plan Consists of More Than Just a Will, estate planning involves taking care of yourself first. As such, the Durable Power of Attorney for Finances becomes an integral document for your estate plan.

The Durable Power of Attorney for Finances is a document that allows you to designate an agent to handle your finances in the event you become incapacitated. Additionally, the agent you choose has only the financial authority that you grant them in the document. Therefore, choosing an agent for your Durable Power of Attorney for Finances is vital to building a solid estate plan.

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Choosing the Right Executor to Administer Your Estate

27 Monday Nov 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Probate

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Backup Will, Common Estate, estate, Estate Administration, Estate Plan, Executor, Formal Probate Process, Living Trust, probate, Strategy, Will

Choosing the right executor to handle your estate is a prerequisite to selecting a solid strategy for your estate plan. In the article Use Common Sense to Select a Good Strategy for Your Estate Plan, naming an executor is part of the preparation for selecting a solid strategy. Therefore, when choosing your executor, ensure the person has the right traits to administer your estate plan.

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Use Common Sense to Select a Good Strategy for Your Estate Plan

20 Monday Nov 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Planning Tips

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Abatement, Assets, Beneficiary, Common Estate, decedent, estate, Estate Income Taxes, Estate Obligations, Estate Plan, Estate Size, Executor, Formal Probate, Insolvent Estates, probate, Probate Avoidance, Probate Avoidance Strategy, Retirement Accounts, Small Estates, Strategy, Trust, Well-Funded Estate, Will

While planning your estate, common sense is necessary to select a good strategy. In common estates, there are many options in selecting a strategy designed to execute your estate plan. Since forming a strategy involves many decisions, you need to use common sense to make good decisions. Otherwise, problems may result for your beneficiaries and your executor. In essence, common sense leading to good decision making is the formula for a sound estate plan.

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Small Business Owners: Don’t Leave Your Executors in the Dark

23 Monday Oct 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Planning Tips

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Attorney, Business Accounts, Business Registration, Common Estates, Common Executors, Corporation, CPA, decedent, estate, Estate Administration, Estate Plan, Executor, Final Taxes, Schedule C, Small Business, Small Business Owners, Sole Proprietor

While constructing their estate plans, small business owners should advise their executors about changes in their business. Although the executors don’t need to know the day-to-day business operations, small business owners should inform their executors of the following:

Any sale of the business.
A change in registration of the business.
The succession plan for the business, if any.

Consequently, if the small business owners overlook their executors, the executors will experience a chaotic estate administration.

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Apathy Towards Estate Planning Can Lead to Adverse Consequences

16 Monday Oct 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Planning Tips

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Abatement, Ademption, Administrator, Beneficiaries, Beneficiary, Court Appointed Administrator, decedent, estate, Estate Planning, Executor, Guardian, Intestacy, Intestacy Laws, Intestate, Judge, probate, Tax Authorities, valid will, Will

Presently, apathy towards estate planning is commonly brought on by perceptions people have about estate planning. Recently, during conversations about estate planning, the following perceptions surfaced:

Planning for your death is too morbid.

Estate planning is boring.

Estate planning involves a lot of work in which I have no time for.

Unfortunately, these negative perceptions lead to apathy that result in the following consequences concerning estate planning:

Some people will procrastinate for such a long time that estate planning is completely forgotten. As a result, their estate will fall into intestacy when they perish.

People will create a sloppy estate plan just to get through a process they detest. As a result, complications will arise that will confuse the executor and the beneficiaries.

Although there are people who take estate planning seriously, there are plenty of people who are apathetic. Thus, apathy towards estate planning can lead to adverse consequences for the executor and for the beneficiaries of the deceased.

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Grandchildren Inheriting Savings Bonds for Education

08 Sunday Oct 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Beneficiaries

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529 College Savings Investment Account, Beneficiaries, Common Executors, Distribute Savings Bonds, Education Tax Exclusion, estate, Executor, Financial Professionals, higher education, Inherited Savings Bonds, Interest Income, Medallion Signature Guarantee, Payable on Death, Redeem Savings Bonds, Reissuing Savings Bonds, Savings Bond Registration, Savings Bonds, Series EE Savings Bonds, Series I Savings Bonds, Tax Liability, Tax Professional, TreasuryDirect, TreasuryDirect Account, Will

Presently, many grandchildren find themselves inheriting savings bonds left for them by deceased grandparents. Although savings bonds can be problematic when it comes to inheritance, inheriting savings bonds for education can be helpful. In fact, with a correct registration, the savings bonds may qualify for the education tax exclusion. According to TreasuryDirect the following must apply, in part, to qualify for the education tax exclusion:

When using bonds for your child’s education, the bonds must be registered in your name and/or your spouse’s name. Your child can be listed as a beneficiary on the bond, but not as a co-owner.

Ultimately, the registration for the savings bonds must be in a parent’s name to qualify for the education tax exclusion. Unfortunately, many grandparents mistakenly register the savings bonds in their own name while designating the grandchild as the beneficiary. Consequently, complications arise when applying for the education tax exclusion after redeeming the savings bonds.

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Two Reasons Why a Beneficiary May Become Belligerent

11 Monday Sep 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Beneficiaries

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Abatement, Abatement Process, Ademption, Ademption by Extinction, Belligerent Beneficiary, Beneficiary, bequest, Claims, Common Estates, Contest The Will, Doctrine of Ademption, estate, Estate Assets, Executor, Expenses, Identity Theory, Probate Avoidance Strategy, Taxes, Threaten Lawsuit, Will

There are many reasons a beneficiary may become belligerent. However, according to the article How to Handle a Belligerent Beneficiary, one way a beneficiary acts out towards an estate is to exercise their right to contest the will or threaten a lawsuit. Moreover, there are two legitimate reasons why a beneficiary may exercise such a right: abatement or ademption.

Unfortunately, the executor must inform each beneficiary named in the will that they are part of the estate. If the beneficiary understands the bequest they may receive, the beneficiary will expect that bequest at some point. So, if abatement or ademption affected a bequest, the intended beneficiary may become belligerent. As a result, the belligerent beneficiary may contest the will or sue the estate.

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Paying Debts and Honoring Bequests through the Abatement Process

21 Monday Aug 2017

Posted by Robert Dowling in Probate

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Abatement, Abatement Process, Administration Expenses, Administration Plan, Attorney, Beneficiaries, Bequests, Claims, Common Executor, Creditors, decedent, Estate Assets, Estate Expenses, Estate Planner, Executor, Expenses, Funeral Expenses, Intestacy, Personal Property, Real Property, Will

When an executor realizes the estate lacks the assets to meet estate obligations, including bequests, an abatement process occurs. The abatement process allows for the proportional payment of obligations using limited assets that result in reducing or eliminating bequests to beneficiaries.

Initially, to determine the need for abatement, the executor will build an administration plan as described in the article The Administration Plan: A Necessity for the Executor. If the plan reveals that the estate lacks the assets to meet estate obligations, then abatement will result. Additionally, if the will excludes abatement instructions, estate law will handle the abatement process. This article will provide an overview of how estate law in Massachusetts handles abatement.

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The Common Executor

~ A Journey into Estate Administration

Tag Archives: Executor

The Final Steps to Complete Your Durable Power of Attorney for Finances

Considerations for Choosing Your Health Care Proxy

Considerations for Choosing an Agent for Your Durable Power of Attorney for Finances

Choosing the Right Executor to Administer Your Estate

Use Common Sense to Select a Good Strategy for Your Estate Plan

Small Business Owners: Don’t Leave Your Executors in the Dark

Apathy Towards Estate Planning Can Lead to Adverse Consequences

Grandchildren Inheriting Savings Bonds for Education

Two Reasons Why a Beneficiary May Become Belligerent

Paying Debts and Honoring Bequests through the Abatement Process