Estate planning does indeed involve making preparations for the distribution of your material assets to your loved ones after you pass away. But when you look at the broader picture there is more to it than that. Of course it is very possible that there will be a period of time preceding your death when you’re not in the best of health and possibly incapable of making your own medical, financial, and personal decisions. If you want to be comprehensively prepared you need to plan for this eventuality, and if you are proactive about it you will gain a great deal of peace of mind.

The majority of people are going to need long-term care at some point in time, and with this in mind you may want to explore the specific facility that you would prefer to stay in if it did become necessary. There are a wide range of assisted-living facilities that offer different amenities at varying price points. If you were to explore your options in advance and identify the specific facility that you would prefer to reside in you are insuring your own comfort while taking this sensitive decision out of the hands of your loved ones.

The funeral is something you may also want to consider seriously. There are a lot of choices to be made, including whether you want to be buried or cremated. If you want to be buried a casket must be selected, and a burial plot must be identified and purchased. The exact nature of the memorial service, if there is in fact going to be one, is another matter to address. You can make these decisions in advance while you’re still alive and if you so choose you can even make arrangements with a funeral home of your choice.

By being proactive in this manner you maintain control of your own affairs “through the finish line,” as it were, and you circumvent any possible disagreements between family members while making things easier on them during a difficult time.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

Many people do not think about estate planning until they start to get a bit older with retirement starting to appear over the horizon. Although it is advisable to have an estate plan in place as soon as you become a responsible adult, better late than never, as they say. But when you do start to think about the future there is more to consider than simply sitting down and writing out a will, which is what many people think estate planning is all about.

A will is only one of the ways that you can transfer assets to your loved ones after you pass away, and it is not always the best way. When you utilize a will as your primary vehicle of asset transfer your estate must pass through the process of probate. Probate does provide certain protections, but on the other hand it can be expensive, time-consuming, and it is public. Many people would prefer to keep their final affairs private and do what is necessary to prevent will challenges.

Estate planning attorneys have a number of different tools at their disposal that they can use to transfer assets in the most efficient way possible. The correct combination of these vehicles of transfer vary depending on the nature of the assets involved and the specificity of your wishes. This is why it’s so important to retain an estate planning attorney when you’re planning your estate. He or she will listen as you explain exactly what you want to accomplish with your legacy and then recommend the appropriate course of action.

There are many different areas of specialty within the law, and it takes a lot of time and acquired experience to become an estate planning expert. Passing along your assets to your loved ones is an extremely important matter, and it is something that should only be entrusted to a licensed, focused, and dedicated legal professional.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

It is really surprising when you see the statistics regarding how prepared people are for the future. There was a Harris interactive survey conducted back in 2009 that shed some light on the subject.  Only 35% of the people that they communicated with had executed a last will, and a paltry 29% had signed a living will. This is really unacceptable because you are putting your family at risk when you go through life without an estate plan.

The survey indicated that people are often deterred from engaging in estate planning because they are under the impression that it is only important for people with extraordinary wealth. Many of the respondents also mentioned the fact that they were reluctant to incur legal expenses and this was one of the reasons why they had failed to executed any estate planning documents.

In reality, estate planning is important for people of all income brackets. You could say that it is even more important for people who don’t have extraordinary means to make sure that their loved ones will have some resources to draw from should the unthinkable take place. One of the aspects of estate planning that would be relevant in this regard is income replacement. Having an income replacement vehicle in place such as adequate life insurance coverage is key when you have people depending on your income.

As for legal expenses, the relatively modest cost of representation is going to far outweigh the costs of a lack of preparation. There are sources of asset erosion out there and your estate planning attorney will evaluate your assets and do what is necessary to keep them intact as you are passing them on to your loved ones.

Everyone should have at least a basic estate plan in place. If you are currently unprepared, take action for the benefit of those that you love and arrange for a consultation with an experienced estate planning attorney.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

The debate surrounding the legitimacy of the estate tax is rather one sided from a logical perspective. Those who are against it correctly assert that it is an exercise in double taxation. They also suggest that the rate, which has variably come in at between 35% and 55% during recent years, is extreme.

The argument in favor of the tax would appear to be far less substantive to some. It seems to revolve around the idea that we should “tax the rich.” Period. So there are those who are under the impression that they do not have to concern themselves with the estate tax because it is only levied on people of wealth. Many would question the fairness of this ideology, but the reality is that you don’t have to be extraordinarily wealthy to be exposed to the estate tax.

Right now the estate tax exclusion is $5 million, so only the portion of an estate that exceeds this amount is subject to the estate tax. But when the present tax relief act expires in 2013 this exclusion will go down to $1 million. There are over 8 million families in the United States that have a net worth that exceeds $1 million, so this will impact a lot of people. If you and your spouse worked hard all your life, bought property at the right time, invested wisely, and took advantage of opportunities that presented themselves you may well have accumulated assets in excess of $1 million without ever considering yourself rich.

The point is to make sure that you are aware of the overall value of your estate and not assume that you’re not exposed to the estate tax because you’re not a billionaire. The estate tax exclusion is constantly changing, and though you may hear about how it doesn’t affect you unless you are rich you may want to pay close attention because one person’s definition of rich may differ from that of another.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

One of the primary objectives of estate planning for many individuals is to gain estate tax efficiency, and there are a number of legal instruments that can be utilized to provide this. The best way to proceed depends on the exact nature of your assets and what your overall intentions may be. Many people who are seeking estate tax efficiency also have an interest in giving something to charitable causes as a part of their legacy, and there are some vehicles of charitable giving that can efficiently accomplish both things at the same time.

One of these is the CRUT or charitable remainder unitrust. These vehicles provide the grantor or a beneficiary of his or her choice with an ongoing source of income via annual annuity payments that must equal no less than 5% and no more than 50% of the value of the trust. These annuity payments are made for the duration of the trust term or until the death of the grantor. Once the grantor dies or the trust term expires the charitable beneficiary receives the remainder that is left in the trust. This remainder must be at least 10% of the original trust value.

There are a few tax advantages that go along with the creation of a charitable remainder unitrust. You get a charitable deduction that is based on the valuation of the remainder interest. Plus, when you fund the trust you are removing those assets from your estate and in so doing you are reducing your estate tax exposure. If you were to place appreciated securities into the trust and then have them sold by the trust rather than selling them yourself you would not have to pay capital gains tax all at once on the total transaction. The tax would instead be paid over the course of the trust term.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

When you decide that the time has come to start planning your estate you will have to do some research to get a feel for what the process entails. The reality is that there are some rather complex strategies that can be implemented when necessary, and these are often times needed as way to reduce the asset erosion that can be caused by the estate tax. To develop a comprehensive working knowledge of estate planning it is going to take some time and effort, but there are some basics that can serve as a good starting point and we would like to cover them here.

To break it down to its simplest form, you are first going to need some vehicle or vehicles of asset transfer. The most common one of these is the last will, and most people are well aware of the existence of such a document. The thing about using a will to transfer assets that can be troublesome is the fact that it must pass through probate. Probate is the legal process of estate administration, and people sometimes try to avoid it because it can be costly, it is time consuming, and it is public.

Many people who want to avoid probate do so through the creation of revocable living trusts. You fund the trust and name a trustee to administer it and beneficiaries who will ultimately receive distributions from the trust in accordance with your wishes as stated in the trust agreement. These asset transfers take place outside of the probate process.

The other component that is widely recommended involves advance health care directives such as a living will and a durable medical power of attorney. With the living will you state your preferences with regard to the medical procedures you would accept or deny in the event of your incapacitation. The durable medical power of attorney is used to appoint someone to act in your behalf should you become unable to make medical decisions for yourself.

In addition, you may want to include a durable financial power of attorney naming a representative of your choosing to make financial decisions for you should you become unable to do so at some point in the future.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

A lot of individuals think of a last Will when they hear the subject of estate planning mentioned. However, utilizing a last Will as your sole vehicle of asset transfer may not be the best choice and when you are making preparations for the future there are other things to consider beyond the transfer of financial assets.

In fact, there are many different legal instruments utilized in the field of estate planning and the right combination is going to vary depending on the specifics of each situation. This is why you should be very wary of claims that are made by Internet marketers about how easy it is to plan your own estate.

Yes, someone could conceivably provide you with a template last Will document and you could fill in the blanks. Whether or not it will be legally binding in the state of Connecticut is anybody’s guess, and this document is probably not going to cover all of your planning needs optimally even if it was to be deemed valid.

Personalized attention is extremely important if you want to go forward with an estate plan that suits your needs impeccably. The truth is that it is not that time-consuming or expensive to do the right thing and retain legal counsel. Estate planning is done for the benefit of those that you love, and it is not something that should be entrusted to a generic document that you downloaded off the Internet.

To obtain expert guidance, simply take a moment to pick up the phone and arrange for a consultation with a Hartford CT estate planning lawyer.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

We have all heard it said that “giving is better than receiving,” and this is just a quaint truism when you hear the words spoken or read them in print. However, no matter how many times you’ve given a gift, when you actually have the experience of seeing the joy that the right gift brings to the recipient it is truly a meaningful experience. This is something to keep in mind when you are planning your estate, because giving gifts while you’re still alive can provide you with estate tax efficiency while you simultaneously get to enjoy the experience of giving.

Right now the estate tax exclusion is $5 million, but it is scheduled to go down to just $1 million in 2013. So, if your estate is exposed to the estate tax you will want to look for ways to reduce its value while losing nothing in the process. The first thing that is going to come to the mind of many people would be to simply give gifts to those who would be inheriting the money anyway while you are still alive. This would be great but the fact is that the powers that be have imposed a gift tax that is unified with the estate tax, and it carries the same rate. There is a $5 million gift tax exemption but it is unified with the estate tax exclusion, so using any portion of it to give tax-free gifts will only reduce your estate tax buffer.

There are however some gift tax exemptions that do not impact the unified gift/estate tax exclusion. One of these is the educational exemption, which allows you to pay the tuition directly of an unlimited number of students equaling any amount of money as a gift free of the gift tax. It should be noted that this does not include living expenses, books and fees. But, you are also entitled to give up to $13,000 tax-free each year to any number of people without impacting your unified exclusion. So you can utilize this exemption to provide your student with additional financial resources, and if you’re married you and your spouse could combine your respective exemptions to give as much is $26,000 per recipient annually.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

Pet ownership can be one of the joys of life, and it can be especially beneficial to senior citizens. Many elderly individuals have lost family members along the way while others have become busy with their own lives. As a result, loneliness can become a problem. It is important for seniors to maintain good mental health, and loneliness can lead to depression which can be a significant mental health challenge.

It is a lot less likely that you will become depressed if you have a loving companion by your side who is constantly providing you with entertainment and putting a smile on your face. Dogs and cats are different and have different personalities, but whatever your preference, a pet can certainly enhance your life when you are a senior citizen.

If you are a pet owner and you have no one else in the home who would naturally become the pet’s owner after your death you have to make revisions beforehand. The most important thing is going to be to find someone to care for the animal.

A lot of people will have a relative or friend who is more than willing to take over. You can simply ask around and you’ll probably find someone who is ready, willing, and able to care for your pet if necessary.

Financial arrangements must be made after that, and one choice would be to leave a bequest to the caretaker in your will. Another possibility would be the creation of a pet trust that provides financial resources to be utilized for the care of the animal.

Pet planning is an important part of your comprehensive estate plan if you are a pet owner. To learn more about it, get in touch with a  Hartford estate planning attorney to arrange for an informative meeting.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

If you are like a lot of people, when you first start to recognize the fact that you should have an estate plan in place you may do some research on the Internet. The reality is that these days you can take care of a lot of things on your own due to the fact that there’s so much information out there, and this has helped to spawn the DIY craze. So, when you do browse the web looking for estate planning information you see will sites that would like you to believe that estate planning is a simple, one-size-fits-all endeavor that you can easily take care of for yourself. That is, if you buy one of the handy dandy estate planning kits or software programs that the website is selling.

The reality is that estate planning is not a universal endeavor that is the same for everyone. There are a number of different ways to transfer assets to your loved ones, and the optimal approach will depend on a number of factors that are going to vary on a case-by-case basis. Even a simple last will should be prepared with the realities of the probate court in your jurisdiction in mind. Each state has somewhat different parameters, so one generic template document can’t possibly be perfectly appropriate in every case.

Every family is unique, and each situation must be given personalized attention. There are those who would like to include incentives toward constructive behavior in their heirs; others have concerns about spendthrift family members; and people who are members of blended families often want to make provisions for children from previous marriages. Same-sex couples have a specific set of concerns that others may not have to address. And if you have a loved one who is physically or mentally challenged specialized planning may be called for.

Planning your estate is a serious matter that requires expert advice and guidance. One size does not fit all, and this is something to keep in mind when you hear Internet marketers talking about how easy it is to plan your own estate.

Nirenstein, Horowitz & Associates, P.C. is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.