Category: Estate Planning

Jennifer Raess

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Aug 07, 2023

What do you think of when you hear the term “estate planning?” If you’re like two-thirds of Americans over the age of 18, you may assume it’s something you can do another time. In fact, the majority of U.S. adults don’t have a will and have not done anything to plan for their estate.  However, you don’t have to own a mansion or business to make estate planning work in your favor. For those with any amount of net worth, estate planning alleviates the family strife of having to make important life and financial choices on your behalf. It also...

Jim Sinai

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Aug 02, 2023

What changes in estate planning when rates go up? Over the past two years, interest rates have moved from near zero to 5.25%. Most clients are probably worried about how rising rates will affect their investment and retirement accounts. But advisors working with high net worth clients should also consider how a 500+ basis point shift in rates affects advanced estate planning strategies. Some strategies become more attractive as interest rates rise, while others become less attractive. Advanced estate planning strategies  There are a number of advanced estate planning strategies that can be used to reduce a client’s taxable estate...

Daniel Brockley

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Aug 01, 2023

Vanilla recently hosted Jeff Levine, the lead financial planning nerd for Kitces.com, home of the popular Nerd’s Eye View blog, for a webinar covering key considerations when planning for non-taxable estates. While it’s impossible to pack all the great info Jeff covered in a short blog post (including a rather spectacular metaphor involving the Red Hot Chili Peppers), we’ll give you a few highlights. What are the boundaries of advice financial advisors should give in estate planning? Financial advisors often grapple with the question of where the line lies between estate planning discussions and offering unqualified legal advice. Jeff weighed...

Simona Ondrejkova, CFP

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Jun 29, 2023

While it’s inevitable, it’s a call every advisor dreads: your client’s spouse or family member calling to notify you that your client has passed away. During these challenging moments, advisors must be ready to navigate both the emotional and financial implications of a client’s death. But how can advisors best prepare so they can be a source of comfort for clients’ survivors while ensuring all administrative and financial tasks are taken care of as needed? To answer this, we’ve compiled a guide to help you support the surviving spouse or beneficiaries while fulfilling your duties as an advisor. Here, you’ll...

Daniel Brockley

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Jun 20, 2023

For the past few years, most US tax residents haven’t needed to worry too much about estate tax. In 2018, the estate tax exemption was raised to an historical high of $11.18 million ($22.35 million per married couple), which has been raised yearly to adjust for inflation and put it out of sight for most estates. But the same law that raised the exemption, The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), is set to expire in 2026, bringing the estate tax exemption back down to an estimated $6-8 million per person or $12-16 million per couple (adjusting for inflation) –...

Gene Farrell

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May 17, 2023

  [Watch Legacy Now on demand, to learn more about Vanilla’s vision for estate advisory.] I believe that technology – when used thoughtfully – can be truly transformative. And this week at our Legacy Now event, with the help of Vanilla co-founder Steve Lockshin, I had the opportunity to share how Vanilla plans to transform not just estate planning, but financial advising as a whole, with the new Vanilla Estate Advisory Software.  The technology itself is only a part of the picture. It’s a tool. It’s the enabler that, when paired with exceptional advisors, will allow for a new kind...

Vanilla

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May 11, 2023

Life is unpredictable. And as a financial advisor, one of the essential parts of your job is to help prepare clients for that unpredictability – whether that comes in the form of balancing a portfolio so that it’s not over reliant on a single company or sector or ensuring they have the right documents in place in case of an accident or health scare. One of these key documents is a power of attorney.  A power of attorney (POA) is a legal document that authorizes an individual, known as the agent or attorney-in-fact, to act on behalf of another person,...

Vanilla

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Apr 25, 2023

A living trust (also called a revocable trust) is a legal document created by a person during their lifetime that directs how their assets are managed during their life, and how they are to be distributed after their death. It can also help bypass or minimize the sometimes expensive and time consuming probate process required by a traditional will.  A living trust is typically used in conjunction with a short will that directs all assets held in the individual’s name to “pour over” to the revocable trust on death (referred to as a “pour-over will”).  This living trust estate planning...

Vanilla

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Apr 07, 2023

When it comes to estate planning, there’s no substitute for having the right core legal documents drafted, and ensuring they align with your clients’ wishes. But no matter how carefully estate planning documents are drafted, it’s impossible to anticipate every eventuality – and, the truth is, life often moves faster than clients do when it comes to updating their documents. One great way to bolster an estate plan against the unexpected, and to help trustees make decisions in accord with client expectations, is through letters of wishes. What is a letter of wishes? A letter of wishes is simply a...