Episodes

What’s the difference between owning property as “community property with right of survivorship”, “joint tenancy with right of survivorship” and just plain old “community property”? Let us explain.

Our clients sometimes want to leave their house (or other residence) to be used by a child, spouse or other person. But maybe they don’t want to leave the property outright to the beneficiary. It should be easy to leave the property to be used by the intended beneficiary but to revert to other beneficiaries. Right? Not so fast. Let’s talk more about this idea.

We’ve talked and written about powers of attorney — where to keep them, whom to share them with, what ought to be included. But in this podcast episode, we want to talk about the practicalities of actually using your financial power of attorney in the real world.

After you’ve signed your will, trust (if any), and powers of attorney — just stop tinkering, would you? Don’t keep modifying your beneficiary designations, or writing on the documents, or putting property in joint names. Want to discuss changes, and how to make them? Come back and see us. But don’t tinker.

Episode #200! Who knew we had four years’ worth of weekly podcasts in us? We did. That’s who. And things are still changing at Fleming & Curti, PLC.

Can the guardianship/conservatorship process be sped up when there is an emergency? And what is an emergency, anyway?

Perhaps you have a child who is not “disabled,” but has failed to make their way in the world. We should talk about creating a discretionary trust for your non-special needs child. It might look like a special needs trust, but it doesn’t have to carry that name (nor, indeed, do most special needs trusts — but that’s a different story). It’s primary purpose is not to protect public benefits based on disability — because your child hasn’t been found to be disabled. But you can give a trustee the ...

Have you heard of pet trusts? We can talk to you about taking care of your pets when we meet to discuss estate planning. But a formal trust for your pets’ care isn’t the only — or necessarily even the best — alternative. Let’s discuss.

Fleming & Curti, PLC, partner Jacque Mingle has been named as a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. She received this honor at the earliest possible date after meeting the 10-year threshold for new Fellows. Congratulations, Jacque!

Trust tax rates reach the highest level on even small amounts of income. As a consequence, they are almost always higher than individual tax rates. Does that mean one should avoid planning involving trusts? Absolutely not. Trust tax rates are generally higher, but the benefits of establishing a trust often outweigh the increased tax. And a careful trustee can manage tax payments thoughtfully. Let us explain some of the issues.

Are you a trustee or beneficiary of an older, irrevocable trust that has terms which should be modified? One alternative worth considering, at least in Arizona: look into a family settlement agreement (sometimes described as a non-judicial settlement agreement) to modify the trust’s terms. It might not always be the best, or most workable, idea. But it is one important tool in the planner’s toolbox.

What a thoughtful gift! Paying for someone else’s estate planning! Wait. Why would you do such a thing? Maybe you have an adult child who really needs to get a will and power of attorney done. Maybe they’re even involved in a family business, or they are the beneficiary of an existing trust. Can you pay us (or any attorney) to prepare their will and powers of attorney? What about your elderly and unprepared parents? Are the rules different for them, or your sibling or someone else who really ...

FDIC coverage for your bank accounts has been in the news lately. The rules can be deceptively complicated — but there is one simple, over-arching rule. If you have less than $250,000 (altogether) in deposits in a given bank, you are covered by FDIC insurance. Some banks operate brokerage entities, too. Those accounts, and other non-depository accounts, are not covered at all — and therefore don’t count toward the $250,000 limit. And the bank rules don’t apply (at least not directly) to credit ...

How many copies should you ask for (or make) of your estate planning documents? Who should you share them with? Where should you keep copies — and the originals? We address these and other questions about your estate planning documents in this week’s podcast episode.

Many of our clients want us to help them organize a family meeting, where their estate plan can be discussed, questions answered and explanations offered. We are happy to oblige. In this podcast episode, we discuss what a family meeting might look like — and what it need not include.

We are huge fans of the American hospice care system. We have personal experience. Many of our clients have had family members go through hospice at the end of life. Often, we deal with hospice care in the cases where we act as guardian, conservator, trustee or agent. So we know a few things about how hospice works — and we remain fans.

When dividing a trust or estate among beneficiaries, most of our clients want an equal distribution among their children (or nephews and nieces, or whomever). Sometimes they ask for an equal division among, say, their three children and their favorite charity. But the basic goal can usually be summed up by the concept of “equal division.” But that ignores the reality that the value of different assets can be different to the beneficiaries. In other words, retirement accounts are usually worth l...

As a widow (or widower), you recently brought out your old estate planning binder to update its contents. You’re surprised to find that the trust you and your late spouse created is supposed to split into two separate trusts — and you never did any such thing. Are you in trouble? Will there be costs? OR: your spouse died several years ago, and you haven’t heard from your stepchildren since shortly after the funeral. Now you want to amend the trust you created together, but can you? What is this...

You’re working on your estate planning documents. One of the more important parts of your plan: the special needs trust for your child (or grandchild, or niece/nephew) who has a disability. But what should you expect will be transferred to that special needs trust — either now or at your death? We review some of the funding choices you will need to consider. Should retirement accounts go into the special needs trust? Or, perhaps, only liquid assets? What about your home? As we explain, there a...

We have some advice and direction about whether your car (or motor home, or boat, or other vehicle) should be titled to your trust. It’s based on our own recent experience. As always, our advice is specific to Arizona law. Your mileage may vary. See what we did there?

We explain some of the issues that come up while we are researching your deed (usually for your home) when helping you with estate planning.

Thinking of naming a professional trustee, personal representative or agent? We discuss some of the questions you might ask a prospective fiduciary.

One reason often give for establishing a living trust: trust contests are harder to maintain than will contests. Still, they do happen. Join us for a discussion of what the challenge to a trust might look like.