Having a clear conversation about death and dying is never fun. Most people avoid them because they invoke feelings about our inevitable demise. Broaching this subject can be particularly difficult for parents and their adult children. Adult children may avoid bringing up the topic for different reasons. The most common are they don’t want to think […]
For decades, common financial planning wisdom has encouraged almost all American workers to maximize their contributions to qualified retirement accounts. Indeed, doing so can be a powerful way to reduce your current income tax liability, grow your savings exponentially tax-free, and, in most states, protect your savings from claims of creditors. And by and large, this […]
On December 20, 2019, President Trump signed the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE Act), which became effective on January 1, 2020. The Act is the most impactful legislation affecting retirement accounts in decades. It will have a positive impact for many older Americans but could have negative tax consequences for many beneficiaries […]
Sweeping retirement changes were just signed into law that bring both positives (for savers) and potentially disastrous consequences (for heirs). The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act was signed into law on December 20, 2019, ushering in the largest retirement planning bill since the Pension Protection Act of 2006. The SECURE Act has […]
During your lifetime, your retirement account has good asset protection, but as soon as you pass that account to a loved one, that protection could evaporate. This means one lawsuit and POOF! Your life long, hard earned savings could be gone. Your heirs could be left penniless. Fortunately, there is a solution to this problem. A […]
The fall, generally late-October or early-November, is the time when employers send out summaries of employee benefits offered by the company and give employees the option to enroll in these benefits. These can generally include retirement plan options, health care, dental, vision, short and/or long-term disability, and life insurance coverage. Your employer may pay 100 percent […]
You have likely seen several advertisements for reverse mortgages if you have spent any time watching television or surfing on the internet. The concept is a simple one: as long as you own and live in your home, you can supplement your retirement income with a loan that you do not need to pay off. The […]
For many employees, saving for retirement is usually a matter of simply participating in their employer’s 401(k) plan and perhaps opening an IRA for some extra savings. But, for business owners, planning for retirement requires proactivity and strategy. It’s not just the dizzying array of choices for retirement accounts; there’s also planning for the business itself. […]
Consider this story. Beth’s divorce from her husband was recently finalized. Her most valuable assets are her retirement plan at work and her life insurance policy. She updated the beneficiary designations on both to be her two minor children. She did not want her ex-husband to receive the money.
Beth passes away one year after her divorce. Her children are still minors, so the retirement plan and insurance company require an adult to be appointed by a court to receive the inheritance Beth left behind. Who does the court presumptively look to serve as the caretaker of this money? Beth’s ex-husband who is now the only living parent of the children. (In some states, this caretaker of the money is called a guardian, whereas in others it is the conservator. The title does not matter as much as the role, which is to manage the funds on behalf of a minor, since the minor is not legally able to handle significant assets or money.)
The divorce process can be long and expensive. However, the work does not end once the divorce decree is signed. In order to ensure that your assets and estate planning wishes are carried out in light of this major life change, there are three things you must do as soon as possible after divorce.
