Preparing for the future sometimes requires facing harsh realities. An important component of estate planning involves naming someone you trust as a power of attorney. What is a power of attorney? The POA document allows you, the principal, to authorize another to...
Getting your affairs to ensure your family is ready when you die may feel morbid, but it is a necessary and responsible process. Trying to keep as much of your estate out of probate may prove invaluable to your family inheriting quicker. Probate court ensures that...
Estate planning means making arrangements in the case anything bad happens to you. You get to say who will help you during your lifetime if needed, how the assets of your estate will be distributed after you are gone, and who will be in charge then. The simple option...
As a parent, you want what is best for your kids. While you can provide a healthy diet, high-quality education and comfortable living space now, a sudden illness or serious injury may take you away from your children's lives forever. Estate planning is something that...
A trust can be a valuable estate planning tool for passing down your wealth to loved ones. However, many people do not understand what trusts are and what they do. Because of that, they may not take full advantage of their options. Regardless of how much money you...
Trusts are useful estate planning tools. Trusts serve a very broad range of uses and applications. What is trust? A trust is a three-way transaction, when the trust creator, also called a grantor or settlor, assigns money or property to be held by someone else they...
You may think you are too young for a will, but no one knows what may happen from one day to the next. A devastating accident or illness could occur at any time, and this is where a will comes in. Even if you do not have much (or any) wealth to distribute, you need...
A will establishes a person's wishes for his or her belongings and affairs after death. When a person dies without a will, his or her estate is subject to state inheritance laws. In Pennsylvania, these provisions govern the settlement of an estate in the absence of a...
Your 20s are a time to focus on your education, the beginning of your career, and learning more about who you are. Likely, estate planning is the last thing on your mind. Is it too early to start thinking about your golden years? Rather than look at estate planning...
Usually, when we think of annuities, we think of a deferred annuity or an investment type annuity. An investment annuity is like a combination of an investment and insurance policy. The annuity can be invested in many different kinds of investments, and the investor...
