One aspect of an estate plan that can easily be overlooked involves beneficiary designations on retirement plans. Designating your spouse as a beneficiary comes with several significant benefits.The surviving spouse is able to roll over inherited benefits into their...
Oftentimes, people are under the impression that if they don’t have substantial wealth, there’s no reason to have a will. But there are multiple types of wills that serve very different functions. Wills are for much more than allocating funds. They are...
During the recently completed session, the Colorado General Assembly created a new estate planning tool. It will allow you to designate a beneficiary who will receive title to your vehicle when you pass away. The measure, known as House Bill 16-1051, received...
While we do not usually cover celebrity issues on this blog, the news that Prince died without a will or estate plan in place was a shock. But it comes with a lesson. Now, right now is the time to move estate planning from the back burner onto a “to do”...
Music fans here in Colorado and around the world were shocked by the news that musical artist Prince died recently. What may be even more shocking is that the man who went to such lengths to control his music died without a will. This fact could make the estate...
In its simplest form, estate planning is all about your family. The plan is to draw up conclusive and definitive rules that dictate how all of the assets you have accumulated over your life will be passed on to your family members and loved ones. It's so simple! But,...
Estate planning isn't all about wills and trusts. There are two other critical pieces to the estate planning formula that every person should consider and incorporate in their plan: durable power of attorney and an advance health care directive.Durable power of...
Estate planning has a reputation of being difficult and arduous. In a way, this is true. There are some inherently difficult topics to wrestle with when you are discussing an estate plan. But at the end of the day, estate planning is really just the last word of the...
When you pass away, your assets, property and everything that composes your estate needs to be dealt with. These things will be distributed to various parties. If you have it your way (by way of a will and trusts) then the probate process can be avoided or largely...
Say you're a 30-year-old professional. Should you have an estate plan? Say you're a 45-year-old who has been working for a long time and has accumulated quite a few assets. Should you have an estate plan? Say you're 60 or 65, and you know that you only have about 15...
