Phew! There has been a lot of buzz lately with the new Massachusetts estate tax threshold being changed from $1,000,000 to $2,000,000 – it’s been great news for many of our clients. When you are a Trust and Estate Attorney, dealing with death and taxes are part of everyday life, we hear bad news probably […]
Trusts are legal entities, like an LLC or a corporation. You can place assets into trust, and you can take assets out of trust. You place assets into trust by retitling the asset. For example, your checking account statement comes with your name and address on it. When you go to the bank and fill […]
If you have life insurance, you should also have an estate plan. One of the first things people do when they have a baby or purchase a home is get life insurance. Life insurance can cover significant expenses if you pass away and give you peace of mind when thinking about an unexpected death. But […]
Getting old sucks. There is no way around it. We can eat as many antioxidants and exercise every day, but the fact of the matter is we all are getting older every day. And we all age at different rates. In the modern days, women have statistically outlived men. Traditionally, the men took care of […]
Here’s a very basic overview of the Massachusetts Estate Tax This may or may not come as a shock to you, but Massachusetts has one of the lowest estate tax thresholds in the United States. We aren’t called Taxachusetts for nothing! Here is an over simplified explanation of whether or not your family will owe […]
Valentine’s Day is often thought of as a day of love shared between couples. This holiday can, however, also be viewed as a day for giving thanks and showing your family how much you love them. Many people today have not taken the time to leave clear instructions for their estates should something happen to […]
Social media has opened up amazing new revenue streams for all sorts of creative people. If you’re an influencer, chances are good that you are taking care of business, and working with an attorney to protect your content and your brand. But have you thought about what happens to your brand in the event you […]
Do an image search for “estate planning” and you’ll likely see lots of pictures of couples, some young, some older, many with kids. But singles – many without kids – have specific estate planning needs that shouldn’t be ignored. Just because you don’t have a spouse or kids doesn’t mean you don’t have plans for […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way everyone does business. While we still love to see our clients in person, we’ve found that more often, folks ask to conduct their estate planning consult over Zoom. Virtual appointments are different, for sure, but also offer a great opportunity to be more flexible. Still, it’s easy to […]
You know it is important to plan for your future: college for the kids, retirement, and security for your family should anything happen to you. We hear all the time that the whole things seems so overwhelming – and often, people just put it off because it just seems so daunting. But once you’ve decided […]
Google the phrase “Estate Planning Mistakes” and you’ll see pages of results. Seems like attorneys and financial planners are always telling their clients how to avoid one mistake or another as they put together their estate plan. But in the end, the single biggest mistake you can make is all about what you DON’T do. […]
While married couples have different priorities than their single counterparts, one thing is certain: anyone – whether they have a family or not – needs to think about estate tax planning. In fact, planning one’s own estate taxes as a single person might be more important than it is for a married couple. Why? As […]
You’ve often heard that when it comes to gift-giving, it’s the thought that counts. Unsurprisingly, the IRS doesn’t agree. To them, all that matters is that gifts are properly reported and taxed. Gift taxes are only required on gifts of significant financial value, so many people will never have to pay them. But if your […]
A new administration generally means new tax laws. So in these last few months, I’ve heard from many clients with questions about how the Biden presidency will affect them. I was recently asked about the potential repeal of the policy that allows step-up in basis, and wanted to share some thoughts with anyone who’s concerned […]
