A key part of estate planning in Florida is having a health care advance directive. This can give the person – known as the principal – control over who makes their health care decisions if they are incapacitated. The person making the decisions is known as the...
Estate Planning
Should you use an incentive trust in your estate plan?
Do you want to use your estate plan to motivate your loved ones to do something great? If so, then an incentive trust might be a viable option for you. Here, you identify a beneficiary to the trust, but that beneficiary will only receive the trust’s assets once they...
Who can and cannot be a personal representative in Florida?
After a person dies in Florida, probate is a legal process to distribute their property to beneficiaries. Toward that end, a personal representative is named. In many states, the term “executor” is used. The primary objective is to oversee the decedent’s estate and...
Petitioning for guardianship can assist your loved one
If your loved one does not have the capacity to make decisions or manage their affairs, you may want to consider guardianship. The court can appoint a guardian who will have responsibility for their personal, medical, financial and legal needs. Guardianship overview...
How a trust helps your assets avoid the probate process
When Florida residents are beginning to look at estate planning, they probably have plenty of questions about trusts and how a trust might help them as a crucial part of the plan. Most likely, this is because there are many different types of trust to choose from and...
Considerations when choosing a personal representative
When you create an estate plan, you intend that your wishes will be carried out after your death by the person who is named as the personal representative in your will. There are several factors to consider when choosing this person. Choosing a personal representative...
Don’t get bogged down with estate planning misconceptions
If you are a Florida resident who is thinking about getting started on an estate plan, you may come into the process with some preconceived notions about what to expect and what your options might be. You may have even done some research on your own to familiarize...
What is a lady bird deed?
When a person dies, there must be a legal process to determine how to distribute their property. In Florida, this process is called probate. Probate isn't necessarily bad. In fact, it's a necessity in many ways. However, the process can be slow and cumbersome. It can...
Remember an estate plan as part of your financial goals
Financial planning can be hard to accomplish, especially these days when many people in Florida are simply living paycheck to paycheck. However, for those who are able to put together a cohesive plan for how they will handle their income, expenses, assets and...
Pre-need guardian declarations and estate planning
It is difficult to imagine that one day you may not be able to take care of yourself. However, facing this possibility is essential to making sure that your needs are met if you are no longer able to handle your affairs. One way to protect your interests and your...