End-of-life planning isn’t just about the legal documents we help our clients prepare. In our offices, there are many discussions that surface about related topics—disability insurance and the limits of Medicare. There’s a lot of confusion about hospice, and thanks to modern medicine, we are living longer lives, yet that...
California Document Preparers’ comprehensive Living Trust package includes a section for listing contact information for key service providers--your doctors, financial advisors, CPA, pharmacy, etc. We want you to be thinking about those people your spouse or children would need to contact in an emergency or if something happened to you. We...
When our Living Trusts clients get to the part about naming a Successor Trustee, it means they’re nearly finished. They’ll quickly write down the name of their brilliant scientist daughter who lives in Boston whom they rarely see or their dreamy artist son who lives right here in the Bay...
Few pop stars have endured or left a legacy as diverse and successful as that of David Bowie. He died last week of liver cancer, just two days after his 69th birthday and the release of his latest album, Blackstar. He was inventive and cutting edge; the fans who transcended...
Admit it: We all make resolutions Whether we admit it or not, we all make New Year’s resolutions. We may not call them resolutions, and we may keep them to ourselves, but we all make at least small promises to ourselves. Who doesn’t at least silently promise to lose ten pounds...
We’ve helped more than 5,000 clients prepare Living Trusts over the years, and if there’s anything we’ve learned, it’s that there’s a lot of confusion when it comes to these documents. Something else we’ve learned: our clients consistently tell us that the process was a whole lot easier than they...
A brother and sister came into our Oakland office, seeking our advice on what to do about their mother, who had just been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. They were most concerned about getting an Advance Healthcare Directive and Power of Attorney so they could make decisions for their mother once she...
It's never too early to plan for the future — even that part of the future that might not include you anymore. In order to make what could potentially be a very stressful time for your family easier, be sure to tie up all your loose ends when it comes...
James Brown, the frenetic King of Soul, died in 2006 with a legacy of failed marriages, estranged children and run-ins with the law. He left his multimillion dollar estate--not to his disaffected family--but to a Trust that would provide scholarships to needy children in his native state of Georgia. According...
A couple, John and Joan, came into our Walnut Creek office to change the vesting on a deed. Vesting is the manner in which you hold title to your real estate as reflected on your deed. Proper vesting is required every time you file a deed, and includes Sole Ownership, Joint...
Husband and wife Paul and Sue have a sizable estate. At the same time, they are concerned that although they took the time to prepare a will, it will be subject to probate after they’re gone. Probate is the process of proving a will is valid. Once proven, the will guides an...
PLUS: Read a sure-fire way to save 5% on CA Document Preparers’ products and services. It seems that few taxes are more galling to Americans than so-called “death taxes,” which are taxes due on a person’s estate upon death. Why, at this time of grief, must the government bust in and confiscate hard-earned...
