How to Protect Loved Ones from Being Disinherited

How to Protect Loved Ones from Being Disinherited

Even if you’ve updated your wills, power of attorney, trusts and documented your end-of-life wishes, you haven’t finished with your estate plan, says a recent article, “On the Money: Do not disinherit your loved ones” from the Aiken Standard.

Forgetting to update beneficiary designations for retirement plans at work, IRAs, life insurance policies, mutual funds, bank accounts, brokerage accounts, annuities and 529 college savings plans can wreak havoc, with even the best estate plan.

It’s always a good idea to review these designations every few years and update them to reflect your current life. Each account with a beneficiary designation should also have a contingent or secondary beneficiary who will become the primary beneficiary, in case the primary beneficiary dies or declines to accept the asset.

One common occurrence: one child is placed as a beneficiary on an account, thereby invalidating the parents’ will and effectively disinheriting their siblings.

When you name a beneficiary on an IRA account, designate the specific individual by name, rather than by class, such as “all my living children.” Be careful to use the correct legal name. Families where multiple people share names often lead to problems when distributions are being made.

There are other times to review beneficiary designations:

Divorce or remarriage. If a former spouse was listed as a beneficiary of a life insurance policy, you’ll need to get a beneficiary change form to the issuing insurer. Naming your new spouse in your will won’t work.

You’ve started a new job and have rolled over your old 401(k) to an IRA or your new employer’s 401(k). If you want to keep the same beneficiary designations, name them on the new account.

Your primary beneficiary passed away. If you have a secondary beneficiary, that person is now the primary, but you should make sure ongoing designations are in line with current wishes. You’ll also need to name a new secondary beneficiary.

The financial institution changes ownership. Check with the new company to be sure your beneficiary designations are still what you want them to be.

You have a new child or grandchild. Children can’t inherit until they are of legal age, so check with your estate planning attorney to understand how you can provide for your new child or grandchild. Leaving assets to a minor may require the use of a trust.

A beneficiary becomes disabled. Individuals who have special needs and receive federal support have limits on assets. If a beneficiary becomes disabled, an estate planning attorney can create a Special Needs Trust, naming the trust as a beneficiary and keeping any future assets from being countable and making them ineligible for benefits.

Reference: Aiken Standard (Jan. 7, 2023) “On the Money: Do not disinherit your loved ones”

Should I Keep Beneficiary Designations Up to Date?

Should I Keep Beneficiary Designations Up to Date?

If you don’t know who your beneficiaries are, then it’s time for a beneficiary designation check. Even if you think you remember, every now and then, they should be checked, according to an article “Are your beneficiary designations up to date?” from Community Voice.

Your choices may change with time. When did you open your very first IRA? Do you even remember when you purchased your life insurance policies? If it was back in the 1990s, chances are good the people in your life have changed, as well as your priorities.

When we filled out those forms on paper, back in the day, we were all confident they’d be the same forever, but time and life have a way of changing things. In five, ten or twenty years, big changes may have happened in your life. Your beneficiary designations and your estate plan need to reflect where you are now, not where you were then.

Smart people review these items every year. If you’re still working, your employer may have changed custodians for your retirement plan and your insurance policy. When a new custodian takes over, sometimes beneficiary designations can get lost in the change.

If you don’t have a beneficiary designation on these accounts, or any account where you have the option to name a beneficiary, you may have a bigger problem. The tax-focused part of your estate plan could be undone if you thought your 401(k) would go to your spouse but your spouse predeceased you.

If you don’t want your spouse to inherit your 401(k) or other retirement plan, your spouse will need to waive the inheritance in writing, if you want those assets to go to children or others. By law, spouses are protected when it comes to certain kinds of retirement accounts.

What most people don’t realize is that whatever choice you make on the beneficiary designation overrides anything in their wills. If you named someone to be your beneficiary, whether or not they are in your life, they will still receive the inheritance. Your family can try to fight it out in court, but they most likely will lose.

Another pitfall: naming the financial whiz in the family, then forgetting to review documents. Problems can arise if the whiz-kid moves far away or dies. If you make big changes to how you wish your estate to be distributed and neglect to tell the person named to carry out your updated wishes, they spend a lot of time trying to effectuate an out-of-date plan.

If you name your spouse as a beneficiary, the tax consequences are simpler. However, you still need an estate plan to plan for when the second spouse dies. In other words, you need an estate plan, including a will and trusts, and you also need to review it at least every three to five years.

Reference: Community Voice (September 30, 2022) “Are your beneficiary designations up to date?”

How Does Probate Court Work?

How Does Probate Court Work?

Probate court is where wills are examined to be sure they have been prepared according to the laws of the state and according to the wishes of the person who has died. It is also the jurisdiction where the executor is approved, their activities are approved and all debts are paid and assets are distributed properly. According to a recent article from Investopedia “What is Probate Court?,” this is also where the court determines how to distribute the decedent’s assets if there is no will.

Probate courts handle matters like estates, guardianships and wills. Estate planning lawyers often manage these matters and navigate the courts to avoid unnecessary complications. The court process begins when the estate planning attorney files a petition for probate, the will and a copy of the death certificate.

The court process is completed when the executor completes all required tasks, provides a full accounting statement to the court and the court approves the statement.

Probate is the term used to describe the legal process of handling the estate of a recently deceased person. The role of the court is to make sure that all debts are paid and assets distributed to the correct beneficiaries as detailed in their last will and testament.

Probate has many different aspects. In addition to dealing with the decedent’s assets and debts, it includes the court managing the process and the actual distribution of assets.

Probate and probate court rules and terms vary from state to state. Some states don’t even use the term probate, but instead refer to a surrogate’s court, orphan’s court, or chancery court. Your estate planning attorney will know the laws regarding probate in the state where the will is to be probated before death if you’re having an estate plan created, or after death if you are the beneficiary or the executor.

Probate is usually necessary when property is only titled in the name of the decedent. It could include real property or cars. There are some assets which do not go through probate and pass directly to beneficiaries. A partial list includes:

  • Life insurance policies with designated beneficiaries
  • Pension plan distribution
  • IRA or 401(k) retirement accounts with designated beneficiaries
  • Assets owned by a trust
  • Securities owned as Transfer on Death (TOD)
  • Wages, salary, or commissions owed to the decedent (up to the set limits)
  • Vehicles intended for the immediate family (this depends on state law)
  • Household goods and other items intended for the immediate family (also depending upon state law).

Many people seek to avoid or at least minimize the probate process. This needs to be done in advance by an experienced estate planning attorney. They can create trusts, assign assets to the trust and designate beneficiaries for those assets. Another means of minimizing probate is to gift assets during your lifetime.

Reference: Investopedia (Sep. 21, 2022) “What is Probate Court?”

How Do IRAs and 401(k)s Fit into Estate Planning?

How Do IRAs and 401(k)s Fit into Estate Planning?

When investing for retirement, two common types of accounts are part of the planning: 401(k)s and IRAs. J.P. Morgan’s recent article entitled “What are IRAs and 401(k)s?” explains that a 401(k) is an employer-sponsored plan that lets you contribute some of your paycheck to save for retirement.

A potential benefit of a 401(k) is that your employer may match your contributions to your account up to a certain point. If this is available to you, then a good goal is to contribute at least enough to receive the maximum matching contribution your employer offers. An IRA is an account you usually open on your own. As far as these accounts are concerned, the key is knowing the various benefits and limitations of each type. Remember that you may be able to have more than one type of account.

IRAs and 401(k)s can come in two main types – traditional and Roth – with significant differences. However, both let you to delay paying taxes on any investment growth or income, while your money is in the account.

Your contributions to traditional or “pretax” 401(k)s are automatically excluded from your taxable income, while contributions to traditional IRAs may be tax-deductible. For an IRA, it means that you may be able to deduct your contributions from your income for tax purposes. This may decrease your taxes. Even if you aren’t eligible for a tax-deduction, you are still allowed to make a contribution to a traditional IRA, as long as you have earned income. When you withdraw money from traditional IRAs or 401(k)s, distributions are generally taxed as ordinary income.

With Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s, you contribute after-tax dollars, and the withdrawals you take are tax-free, provided that they’re a return of contributions or “qualified distributions” as defined by the IRS. For Roth IRAs, your income may limit the amount you can contribute, or whether you can contribute at all.

If a Roth 401(k) is offered by your employer, a big benefit is that your ability to contribute typically isn’t phased out when your income reaches a certain level. 401(k) plans have higher annual IRS contribution limits than traditional and Roth IRAs.

When investing for retirement, you may be able to use both a 401(k) and an IRA with both Roth and traditional account types. Note that there are some exceptions to the rule that withdrawals from IRAs and 401(k)s before age 59½ typically trigger an additional 10% early withdrawal tax.

Reference: J.P. Morgan (May 12, 2021) “What are IRAs and 401(k)s?”

What Happens Financially when a Spouse Dies?

What Happens Financially when a Spouse Dies?

Losing a beloved spouse is one of the most stressful events in life, so it’s one we tend not to talk about. However, planning for life after the passing of a spouse needs to be done, as it is an eventuality. According to a recent article from AARP Magazine, “The Financial Penalty of Losing Your Spouse,” the best time to plan for this is before your spouse dies.

You’ll have the most options while your spouse is still living. Estate plans, wills, trusts, and beneficiary designations can still be updated, as long as your spouse has legal capacity. You can make sure you’ll still have access to savings, retirement, and investment accounts. Create a list of assets, including information needed to access digital accounts.

Make sure that your credit cards will be available. Many surviving spouses only learn after a death whether credit cards are in the spouse’s name or their own name.

Get help from professionals. Review your new status with your estate planning attorney, CPA and financial advisor. This includes which accounts need to be moved and which need to be renamed. Can you afford to maintain your home? An experienced professional who works regularly with widows or widowers can provide help, if you are open to asking.

A warning note: Be careful about new “friends.” Widows are key targets of scammers, and thieves are very good at scamming vulnerable people.

Be strategic about Social Security. If both partners were drawing benefits, the surviving spouse may elect the higher benefit going forward. If you haven’t claimed yet, you have options. You can take either a survivor’s benefit based on your spouse’s work history, or the retirement benefit based on your own work history. You will be able to switch to the higher benefit, if it ends up being higher, later on.

Be careful about your spouse’s 401(k) and IRA. If you’re in your 50s, you are allowed to roll your spouse’s 401(k) or IRA into your own account. However, don’t rush to move the 401(k). You can make a withdrawal from a late spouse’s 401(k) without penalty. However, it will be taxable as ordinary income. If you move the 401(k) to a rollover IRA, you’ll have to pay taxes plus a 10% penalty on any withdrawals taken from the IRA before you reach 59 ½. Your estate planning attorney can help with these accounts.

Use any advantages available to you. The IRS will still let you file jointly in the year of your spouse’s death. Tax rates are better for married filers than for singles. Any taxable withdrawals you’ll need to take from 401(k)s or IRAs may be taxed at a lower rate during this year. You may decide to use the money to create a rollover Roth IRA or to put some funds into a non-tax deferred account.

Don’t rush to do anything you don’t have to do. Selling your home, writing large checks to children, or moving are all things you should not do right now. Decisions made in the fog of grief are often regretted later on. Take your time to mourn, adjust to your admittedly unwanted new life and give yourself time for this major adjustment.

Reference: AARP Magazine (May 13, 2022) “The Financial Penalty of Losing Your Spouse”

What Needs to Be Reviewed in Estate Plan?

What Needs to Be Reviewed in Estate Plan?

When it comes to drafting a will and other estate planning documents, note that you probably should revisit them many times before they actually are needed, advises, CNBC’s recent article entitled “Be sure to keep your will or estate plan updated. Here are 3 key reasons why.”

You should give these end-of-life legal papers a review at least every few years, unless there are reasons to do it more often. Things like marriage, divorce, birth or adoption of a child should necessitate a review. Coming into a lot of money (i.e., inheritance, lottery win, etc.) or moving to another state where estate laws differ from the one where your will was drawn up, mean that you should review your plan with an experienced estate planning attorney.

About 46% of U.S. adults have a will, according to a 2021 Gallup poll. If you are among those who have a will or full-blown estate plan, here are some things to review and why.

Even though your will is all about you, there are other people you need to rely on to carry out your wishes. This makes it important to review who you have named to be executor. He or she must liquidate accounts, ensure your assets go to the proper beneficiaries, pay any debts not discharged (i.e., taxes owed), and sell your home. You should also be sure that the guardian you have named to care for your children is still the person you would want in that position.

As part of estate planning, you may create other documents related to end-of-life issues, such as powers of attorney. The person who is given this responsibility for decisions related to your health care is frequently different from whom you would name to handle your financial affairs. You should look at both of those choices.

Even if you have experienced no major life events, those you previously chose to handle certain duties may no longer be your best option.

Remember that some assets pass outside of the will, including retirement accounts like a 401(k) plan, IRAs and life insurance policies. This means the person named as a beneficiary on those accounts will generally receive the money no matter what your will states. Bank accounts can have beneficiaries listed on a pay-on-death form, which your bank can supply.

If a beneficiary is not listed on those non-will items or the named person has already passed away (and there is no contingent beneficiary listed), the assets automatically go into probate.

Reference: CNBC (Jan. 27, 2022) “Be sure to keep your will or estate plan updated. Here are 3 key reasons why”

Do Most People Need a Living Trust?
Living trust and estate planning form on a desk.

Do Most People Need a Living Trust?

Avoiding the costs and extensive time needed to settle an estate through probate is one reason people like to use trusts in estate planning. This type of trust allows you to designate a trustee to manage the assets in the trust after you have passed.  This is especially important if heirs are minor children or adults who cannot manage a large inheritance. A living trust, as explained in the article titled “The Lowdown on Living Trusts” from Kiplinger, has additional benefits. However, there are some pitfalls to be cautious about, especially concerning transferring assets.

Certain assets do not belong in a living trust. Regardless of their size, some assets should never be placed in a living trust, including IRAs, 401(k)s, tax deferred annuities, health savings accounts, and medical savings accounts and others .

Placing these assets in a trust requires changing the ownership on the accounts. Don’t do it! The IRS will treat the transfer as a distribution. You will be required to pay income taxes and penalties, if any are triggered, on the entire value of the account.

You may be able to make the trust a beneficiary of the retirement accounts. However, it is not appropriate for everyone. Changes to IRA distribution rules from the SECURE Act may make this a dangerous move, since the trustee may be required to empty the IRA within ten years of your death.

For practical purposes, assets like cars, boats or motorcycles do not belong in a trust. To transfer ownership to the trust, you will need to retitle them. This would result in fees and taxes. You would also have to change the insurance, since the insurance company may not cover assets owned by trusts. The cost may outweigh the benefits.

Assets belonging in a trust include real estate, especially your primary residence. Placing your home in a trust will minimize the hassle of transferring the home to heirs, if this is your plan. If you own property in another state, transferring the title to a living trust allows your estate to avoid probate in more than one state. Remember to get a new deed to transfer ownership to the trust. If you refinance or take a home equity line of credit, you may need to transfer the property out of the trust and into your name to get the loan. You will then need to transfer the property back into the trust.

Financial assets can be placed in a trust. Stocks, bonds, mutual funds, CDs, money market funds, bank savings accounts and even safe deposit boxes can be placed in a trust. There may be a lot of paperwork, and in some cases, you may need to open a new account in the name of the trust.

Once the trust has been created, do not neglect to fund it by transferring assets. Retitling assets requires attention to detail to make sure all of the desired assets have been retitled. The trust needs to be reviewed every few years, just as your estate plan needs to be reviewed. Be sure to have a secondary trustee named, if you are the primary trustee.

Trusts are an excellent option if you live in a state where probate is onerous and expensive. Assets placed in the trust can be distributed with a high degree of specificity, which also provides great peace of mind. If you believe your oldest son will benefit from receiving a large inheritance when he is 40 and not 30, you can do so through a trust. The level of control, avoidance of probate and protection of assets makes the living trust a powerful estate planning tool.

Reference: Kiplinger (March 24, 2022) “The Lowdown on Living Trusts”

How Do I Avoid Probate?

How Do I Avoid Probate?

Probate can tie up the estate for months and be an added expense. Some states have a streamlined process for less valuable estates, but probate still has delays, extra expense and work for the estate administrator. A probated estate is also a public record anyone can review.

Forbes’ recent article entitled “7 Ways To Avoid Probate Without A Living Trust” says that avoiding probate often is a big estate planning goal. You can structure the estate so that all or most of it passes to your loved ones without this process.

A living trust is the most well-known way to avoid probate. However, retirement accounts, such as IRAs and 401(k)s, avoid probate. The beneficiary designation on file with the account administrator or trustee determines who inherits them. Likewise, life insurance benefits and annuities are distributed to the beneficiaries named in the contract.

Joint accounts and joint title are ways to avoid probate. Married couples can own real estate or financial accounts through joint tenancy with right of survivorship. The surviving spouse automatically takes full title after the other spouse passes away. Non-spouses also can establish joint title, like when a senior creates a joint account with an adult child at a financial institution. The child will automatically inherit the account when the parent passes away without probate. If the parent cannot manage his or her affairs at some point, the child can manage the finances without the need for a power of attorney.

Note that all joint owners have equal rights to the property. A joint owner can take withdrawals without the consent of the other. Once joint title is established you cannot sell, give or dispose of the property without the consent of the other joint owner.

A transfer on death provision (TOD) is another vehicle to avoid probate. You might come across the traditional term Totten trust, which is another name for a TOD or POD account (but there is no trust involved). After the original owner passes away, the TOD account is transferred to the beneficiary or changed to his or her name, once the financial institution gets the death certificate.

You can name multiple beneficiaries and specify the percentage of the account each will inherit. However, beneficiaries under a TOD have no rights in or access to the account while the owner is alive.

Reference: Forbes (March 28, 2022) “7 Ways To Avoid Probate Without A Living Trust”

Can Estate Planning Reduce Taxes?

Can Estate Planning Reduce Taxes?

With numerous bills still being considered by Congress, people are increasingly aware of the need to explore options for tax planning, charitable giving, estate planning and inheritances. Tax sensitive strategies for the near future are on everyone’s mind right now, according to the article “Inheritance, estate planning and charitable giving: 4 strategies to reduce taxes now” from Market Watch. These are the strategies to be aware of.

Offsetting capital gains. Capital gains are the profits made from selling an asset which has appreciated in value since it was first acquired. These gains are taxed, although the tax rates on capital gains are lower than ordinary income taxes if the asset is owned for more than a year. Losses on assets reduce tax liability. This is why investors “harvest” their tax losses, to offset gains. The goal is to sell the depreciated asset and at the same time, to sell an appreciated asset.

Consider Roth IRA conversions. People used to assume they would be in a lower tax bracket upon retirement, providing an advantage for taking money from a traditional IRA or other retirement accounts. Income taxes are due on the withdrawals for traditional IRAs. However, if you retire and receive Social Security, pension income, dividends and interest payments, you may find yourself in the enviable position of having a similar income to when you were working. Good for the income, bad for the tax bite.

Converting an IRA into a Roth IRA is increasingly popular for people in this situation. Taxes must be paid, but they are paid when the funds are moved into a Roth IRA. Once in the Roth IRA account, the converted funds grow tax free and there are no further taxes on withdrawals after the IRA has been open for five years. You must be at least 59½ to do the conversion, and you do not have to do it all at once. However, in many cases, this makes the most sense.

Charitable giving has always been a good tax strategy. In the past, people would simply write a check to the organization they wished to support. Today, there are many different ways to support nonprofits, allowing for better advantages.

One of the most popular ways to give today is a DAF—Donor Advised Fund. These are third-party funds created for supporting charity. They work in a few different ways. Let’s say you have sold a business or inherited money and have a significant tax bill coming. By contributing funds to a DAF, you will get a tax break when you put the funds into a DAF. The DAF can hold the funds—they do not have to be contributed to charity, but as long as they are in the DAF account, you receive the tax benefit.

Another way to give to charity is through your IRA’s Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) by giving the minimum amount you are required to take from your IRA every year to the charity. Otherwise, your RMD is taxable as income. If you make a charitable donation using the RMD, you get the tax deduction, and the nonprofit gets a donation.

Giving while living is growing in popularity, as parents and grandparents can have pleasure of watching loved ones benefit from the impact of a gift. A person can give up to $16,000 to any other person every year, with no taxes due on the gift. The money is then out of the estate and the recipient receives the full amount of the gift.

All of these strategies should be reviewed with your estate planning attorney with an eye to your overall estate plan, to ensure they work seamlessly to achieve your overall goals.

Reference: Market Watch (Feb. 18, 2022) “Inheritance, estate planning and charitable giving: 4 strategies to reduce taxes now”

Can You Keep Your Children from Inheriting Your Money?

Can You Keep Your Children from Inheriting Your Money?

What if you want to exclude your children and give your assets to a charity or a college after you pass away? You also don’t want your children to be able to contest your will.

Nj.com’s article entitled “My kids are brats. I don’t want them to inherit. What’s next?” explains that a person with this intention has a number of options for their estate.

First, you should understand that, unless there is a pre-existing contractual agreement or other obligation to do so, a person typically isn’t required to leave anyone other than their spouse anything in their estate.

A properly drafted will by an experienced estate planning attorney allows a person to name the beneficiaries of their estate. This can include charities. It also includes the amount or specific items and in what way each beneficiary will inherit.

You really can’t do much to prevent a child from challenging a will. However, your estate planning attorney can take steps to mitigate the risk that a challenge may be successful. This can include ensuring the testator — the person who establishes a will — has the requisite capacity to sign a will (“being of sound mind”) and that they’re signing it free of any undue influence or duress.

An experienced estate planning attorney will usually meet with a client several times to discuss the client’s assets and intention of disinheriting a child. The attorney will take notes that may be offered as evidence in the event of a will contest and even conduct the meeting in the presence of another attorney or staff member of the firm who could act as another witness.

A will should include specific language that it is the testator’s intent to disinherit a person, and that this individual should be treated as predeceasing the testator for purposes of the will. This helps ensure that the disinherited individual doesn’t somehow benefit.

Note that not all assets pass through the estate and pursuant to the terms of a will. Assets like retirement accounts, life insurance, annuities, and other financial accounts pass by beneficiary designation.

Real estate usually passes by operation of law, such by joint tenancy with right of survivorship.

Reference: nj.com (Dec. 22, 2021) “My kids are brats. I don’t want them to inherit. What’s next?”