
When Can Estate Assets Be Distributed?
Many estate executors focus on estate taxes and forget about income taxes. That can be an expensive mistake.
Many estate executors focus on estate taxes and forget about income taxes. That can be an expensive mistake.
A large 5.9% cost-of-living adjustment is coming to Social Security beneficiaries in 2022. That means the average monthly retirement benefit will go up by $92 per month. Exactly how much more money you will see may depend on the amount of Medicare Part B premiums.
Retirement is an exciting milestone. Planning becomes even more crucial, once you get within a few years of saying goodbye to your career. As we turn 60 and inch closer to retirement, there are important questions to answer.
You should start by talking to an estate planning attorney who can look at your assets and income and see what impact they will have on Medicaid eligibility.
Sophisticated analyses take into account the tradeoff of receiving no income during the deferral period and more income later in retirement.
If you have updated your estate plan during the Covid crisis and even found a way to sign your documents while maintaining social distance, do not overlook the last step of trust funding.
By discussing finances with your children early and often, you can set them—and future generations—up for success, when it’s time to receive the wealth you’ve accrued.
When a loved one dies, any leftover IRA funds they had, goes to whomever they labeled as beneficiaries. If you’re a beneficiary, you have to decide how you’re going to use it—a decision that’s a little more complicated this year than it normally is.
Under the new law, not only must all of the tax on IRAs and plans benefits be paid much earlier than it was before, but the rate will likely be much higher too, since that income will be bundled into the recipients’ peak earning years.
Not surprisingly, online do-it-yourself legal services have a huge customer base, likely because they are cheaper and more convenient than using a local lawyer. Sites like LegalZoom say you can “get a will” that’s the same as what you get from the lawyer down the street. But, unfortunately, DIY or form wills are prone to any number of problems which cause your estate to be divided incorrectly, your probate to be administered inefficiently, or your wishes to be completely ignored. [Read More]