Category Archives: Wills vs Trusts

Wills versus living trusts the difference between a will and a living trust. Marital A/B trust.

Probate – More public than ever!

Ancestry.com just announced that they’ve made a new addition to their site. When you search for someone, you will not only see facts about their life but may see a copy of their will and probate records. Ancestry claims that “probate records often document family relationships over multiple generations. Wills can also give insights into your ancestor’s lifestyle and personality: J.P. Morgan left large bequests to his librarians; Louisa May Alcott asked that her papers be burned.”

Do you want everyone to see the details of your estate? If not, you should think about meeting with an attorney and preparing a trust. That way, everything will be confidential.

For more information about wills, trusts, probate and estate planning, go to www.diesmart.com.

What happens to your casino rewards when you die?

If you’re a member of a casino loyalty program, there may be a great deal of money or comps in your account. When you die, does the account die with you?

An article by Mr. A.C. Casino explains that every Atlantic City casino handles the transaction differently. For example, Bally’s, Caesars, Harrah’s Resort and Showboat Casino-Hotel will transfer any reward credit balance to a surviving spouse or domestic partner. That spouse or partner will have to provide your reward’s card, your personal identification and proof of your death. Any reward credits will still expire on their preset expiration date; it will not be extended.

Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa has a similar policy but all of their comp dollars expire six months after they are earned.

The Tropicana Casino and Resort also has a similar policy but spouses need to link their accounts. Once that’s done, with proper documentation, any remaining dollar balance will be transferred to the surviving spouse’s account.

Golden Nugget, Resorts Casino Hotel, Revel Casino Hotel, Trump Plaza and Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort consider the account closed when someone dies and the balance in not transferable.

If you don’t know what the policy is for your casino of choice, and you maintain a high balance in your loyalty account, you might want to contact that casino and ask. Don’t leave money on the table if you can avoid it.

And be sure to keep your loyalty card account number, PIN and casino host’s name and contact information with your access codes in a place where your spouse or next of kin can find them.

For more information about estate planning or keeping track of your assets, go to www.diesmart.com.

Another actor did it wrong. Do you have your plans in place?

Julie Garber, in her weekly blog, wrote about another person who did it wrong. When actor Paul Walker died in a terrible car crash on November 30th, 2013, he left an estate estimated to be worth at least $45 million. However, he had done no estate planning and left no will. He was only 40 years old and probably thought he had plenty of time to get his affairs in order. His parents, ex-wife and girl friend of seven years are now fighting over who should inherit.

According to California intestate laws, the entire estate should be inherited by his daughter, Meadow. Since she is only 15, someone needs to be responsible for managing to estate until she turns 18. Her mother is her guardian but is not necessarily the one who will control the money on her behalf. Since her parents believe they should manage the estate, the case will have to go to probate court.

And what about his long term girlfriend, Jasmine? She won’t see a penny.

Have you done estate planning? Is all of your paperwork in order? Or are you, like Paul Walker, leaving a mess for your loved ones?

For more information about estate planning, go to www.diesmart.com.

Don’t Pay an Inheritance Tax on Your Own Money!

If you live in Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Nebraska, New Jersey or Pennsylvania beware. These states tax your inheritance, no matter what the amount is.

Barry and Susan Brown of Philadelphia, PA learned this the hard way. Because they were getting older, they decided to add their son’s name to their bank accounts. They decided this would be the easiest way to enable him to access their funds in case of a health emergency.
Unfortunately, their son died before they did. Shortly thereafter, they received a tax bill for several thousand dollars. Why? Under Pennsylvania law, one third of the money in their accounts was considered to be their son’s. Since, according to the law, they had inherited it, they owed 4.5 percent as tax. Their son had none of his own money in the accounts, but that didn’t matter. They had to pay the tax.

This problem could have very easily been avoided. Instead of putting their son’s name on their bank accounts, they should have prepared a financial power of attorney document. In this document, they could have given their son the right to access their money and make financial decisions on their behalf when they were unable to do so. This method would have allowed them to keep all of their money instead of giving some of it away to the government needlessly.

For helpful information about how to plan for incapacity and death, go to www.diesmart.com.