There was a court case decided in Connecticut back in 2011 that is instructive to anyone who is arranging for a parent to enter a nursing home. The case that we are referring to is that of Cook Willow Health Center v. Judy Andrien. In this case Ms. Andrien arranged for her mother to enter Cook Willow Health Center, which is a nursing home. There is a law on the books that prohibits nursing homes from requiring that a third-party guarantee payment before allowing the patient to enter the …
New MetLife Market Survey: Long-Term Care Costs Continue to Rise
Long-term care costs are continuing to spiral upward according to the MetLife Mature Market Institute. Each year the Institute conducts a survey that probes the cost of assisted living throughout the United States. The 2012 statistics are in and the news is not especially encouraging. Throughout the country as a whole the average charge for a month-long stay in an assisted living community in 2011 was $3477. If you multiply this figure by the number of months in a year the annual expense …
Access Your Free Long Island Living Trust Report
We endeavor to take a comprehensive approach to providing useful estate planning information to people here in the greater Smithtown area. One way that we go about it is by passing along a steady stream of relevant content right here on our firm's blog. In addition to this ongoing series of articles we have also prepared a number of very informative and comprehensive estate planning reports. Right now we are making access to our report on living trusts available to members of the …
Have You Ever Wondered About Pet Trusts?
Now and then you read something in the news about a celebrity or otherwise wealthy individual leaving an exorbitant amount of money to a dog or cat in a pet trust. Have you ever wondered how pet trusts work and why someone who isn't rich may benefit from creating one? The truth is that a pet trust can indeed be a sensible and practical addition to your estate plan even if you are not someone like Betty White or Oprah Winfrey. We have put together a very interesting informational report …
Is Retirement in Your Future?
People often utter the phrase "when I retire." In fact, it may be more accurate for many to replace the word "when" with "if." There are those who contend that it is not a matter of "if" because they are going to be receiving Social Security when they reach the age of full eligibility as defined by the SSA. While they may be eligible benefits are modest, with the average monthly benefit at the beginning of 2012 being just a bit over $1200 per month. Cost-of-living adjustments are …
What Your Estate Planning Attorney Needs to Know
During the estate planning process, your estate planning attorney will ask you to fill out informational forms and answer questions. This is because all of this information is important in the design, drafting, and implementation of your estate plan. Just like a medical doctor needs to know your background and symptoms, your juris doctor (i.e. your lawyer) needs to know your background and legal “symptoms.” The more information you provide, the better your estate plan will fit. Here is a …
What Do I Need to Know about Choosing Trustees and Other Trusted Helpers?
Trustees and other trusted helpers are essential to your estate plan. They carry out day-to-day duties when you cannot, either because you’re incapacitated or have died. Your estate plan likely needs trustees, personal representative (i.e. executor), guardians for minor children, health care agent, and financial agent. First, before naming any trusted helper, get his or her permission. Describe the duties of the role and insist that they sleep on it, instead of accepting the role without …
How are Changes Made to My Trust?
Changes are part of the estate planning process, specifically your trust. Once you complete your estate plan, life continues to unfold. Children grow, assets change, we move, we get married or divorced and have more babies. There may be a disability or a death, and laws will continue to change. All of this means that changes should be made to your trust on a regular basis. There are two ways that your trust can be changed. 1. Amendment 2. Restatement Amendment An amendment …
529 Plan, Minor’s Gifting Trust, or UTMA
Many people know about 529 Plans, or tax-advantaged investment plans that can be used for a child’s education. Minor’s Gifting Trusts are less well known, but serve a similar purpose, allowing minors to own securities without needing an attorney to prepare Trust documents, or the court to appoint a Trustee. But there’s another option you may want to consider if you wish to make a gift to a minor: A gift under the UTMA, or Uniform Transfers to Minors Act. A major advantage of a UTMA gift is …
A Living Trust Cannot Do This for Your Estate….
A living trust is a powerful estate planning tool, it allows property owned by the trust to avoid probate, it keeps finances from becoming public and it can be an important aspect of incapacity planning. Advertisements touting the benefits of a living trust are everywhere, but despite their promises, there are five things a living trust CANNOT do for an estate. 1. Protect your assets from creditors: Since a Living Trust is revocable, meaning terms of the trust can be changed and the …
Your Rights When Shopping for Funeral Services
A funeral may be the last big purchase you make in life. It's not unusual for a funeral today to cost more than $12,000. Like any product or service, it is important to shop around and know your legal rights as a consumer. The Federal Trade Commission, the nation's consumer protection agency, enforces a "Funeral Rule" that governs funeral planning and the obligations of funeral homes. The Rule is designed to prevent funeral homes from forcing you to buy a "package" funeral that may include …
Should I Avoid Probate at All Costs?
Probate refers to the process whereby a state court determines the validity of a Will and oversees the executor's actions in carrying out the terms of that Will. This includes distribution of any assets that were in the deceased person's sole name and not automatically transferred to another person upon death. Many estate planning attorneys advise their clients to avoid probate by transferring their assets into a Living Trust during their lifetimes. In this manner, there may be no probate …
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