(excerpted in part from Looking Ahead with Living Trusts, Mallard Pub., 1996, by Griepp & McRee)
It may sound too good to be true, but there is a way to benefit your favorite university, hospital, church, or charity, while receiving favorable tax treatment and guaranteeing income for yourself and/or others, for a period of many years.
If you are the owner of a business that has substantially appreciated in value under your care and management, you can carefully and creatively give it away, using an estate planning technique that will provide you with the funds you desire for a comfortable retirement, to educate children or grandchildren, to invest, or even to start another business. It's called a charitable remainder trust.
These real excuses have been compiled by Sharon McRee, Attorney at Law.
Do you recognize YOUR excuses?
Why would you choose a Certified Specialist in Estate Planning rather than a competent lawyer who seems experienced and may even charge less for his services? Well, ask yourself this question: if you needed to have a serious operation, would you choose a competent family physician to do it, or would you choose a doctor who is board certified in surgery?
Ask your kids. You may be surprised. Personal property trumps money in most cases.
How "finished" is your personal estate plan when you leave our office, sign your funding documents, participate in your annual review sessions and update your trust as your estate changes and expands? The answer might surprise you!
This form will help you begin the estate planning process by identifying areas of special concern to you. You will be better prepared to work with a knowledgeable attorney specialist. Based on your current knowledge of estate planning, check those objectives which are of personal importance to you.
There are trusts and then there are trusts - good trusts and bad trusts. Good trusts are part of a process used by legitimate estate planners and their clients to control the disposition of assets, avoid probate, reduce administration costs, save estate taxes, and preserve family wealth for future generations. This article is not about good trusts. It is about bad trusts. There are two main categories of bad trusts: scam trusts and mill trusts.
