As Yogi Berra supposedly said, “It’s hard to make predictions, especially about the future.” Yet when you create a trust for your heirs, you have little choice but to make predictions about what their needs will be many years down the road. Because circumstances change, it’s a good idea to make your trust flexible enough to accommodate the unexpected. If you tell your trustee what to do in too much detail, the trust might end up
One of the greatest perks of owning a small business is flexibility. You can set your own hours and salary. You can plot the firm’s trajectory without consulting your boss, upper management, or even corporate policy. But that same flexibility may become a curse if handled unwisely. A small business owner without discipline and a well-thought-out strategy may fall into serious financial trouble. Employees in larger firms often rely on the human resources department to establish
There’s not much time left to make tax-saving moves for 2014. Some ideas to consider: Make your January mortgage payment before December 31 to squeeze an extra interest deduction into 2014. Make tax-free gifts to use your annual gift tax exclusion for 2014. This year you can give up to $14,000 to as many individuals as you like without tax consequences. These gifts to individuals are not deductible by you; nor are they taxable to the
Your retirement funds are protected from creditors even if you file for bankruptcy, with only a few limitations. This protection extends to funds in all government-qualified pension plans, including IRAs (traditional and Roth), 401(k)s, 403(b)s, Keoghs, profit sharing, money purchase, and defined benefit plans. A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision has held, however, that an inherited IRA is not a “retirement fund” and therefore doesn’t qualify for bankruptcy protection. An inherited IRA is a traditional or
Here’s some good news for people who live in – or are thinking of entering – a “continuing care retirement community.” These are communities for older people that provide an entire continuum of care, from independent living to nursing home, so that residents can “age in place” and not have to move elsewhere if their faculties start to diminish. These communities are an appealing option, but they can be very expensive. The good news is that there
Long-term care insurance may soon be getting more expensive for women. That’s because two of the country’s biggest long-term care insurance providers have announced plans to introduce “gender-based” pricing. The simple fact is that, on average, women live longer than men. Life insurance has long recognized this fact, and life insurance premiums typically vary based on gender. However, long-term care insurance has always been gender-neutral. This started changing recently when Genworth Financial decided to charge more
Applying for Social Security can seem easy, but there are actually a great many options and choices, and figuring out which one works best for you often requires a lot of strategizing. For instance, the longer you wait to apply for Social Security, the higher the monthly benefit you’ll receive. Depending on what year you were born, Social Security calculates what it considers your “full” retirement age. If you claim benefits before that age, Social Security
Many people incorrectly believe that once seniors enter a nursing home, their freedom is over. In fact, nursing home residents have many rights, and it is important to know those rights and to be able to enforce them. Nursing home residents’ rights are protected under federal law. In broad terms, nursing homes are required to ensure that every resident be given whatever services are necessary to function at the highest level possible. Here are some of
The annual gift tax exemption has been increased to $14,000 in 2013, up from $13,000 last year. That’s due to an adjustment for inflation. This means that you can give any person $14,000 this year without any gift tax liability at all. Making annual gifts of the exemption amount is one of the best and easiest forms of estate planning, because it transfers assets from one generation to the next without any tax liability whatsoever. If
If you have original Medicare, then choosing which doctor you visit can make a big difference in how much you have to pay. Under Medicare Part B, which pays for doctor visits, once your annual deductible is met, Medicare pays 80 percent of what it considers a “reasonable charge” for the item or service. You’re responsible for the other 20 percent. However, in most cases, what Medicare calls a “reasonable charge” is less than what a
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