Estate planning can have a wide variety of goals, depending on a person’s financial situation, family arrangement, moral values, and so on. One important issue to account for in all estate planning, though, is tax planning, and particularly estate and...
When planning for retirement or developing an estate plan, one of the most common questions people have is whether there is an inheritance tax in Delaware. The answer is no. There is not an inheritance tax. However, there is an estate tax. But, the estate tax...
Trusts are estate planning documents that are sometimes used to arrange for assets to be passed on after someone's death, similar to the way that a will establishes who will get what when a person dies. However, trusts can do a lot more than what a will can, allowing...
There are two types of irrevocable charitable trusts that can help protect Delaware residents and their families from estate taxes. Failing to do so can leave families in the same situation that actor James Gandolfini inadvertently did with his untimely death. Due to...
One common error that people make when dealing with their estate plan is to not update their beneficiary designations. This mistake is probably quite common because many are not aware that a will's named beneficiaries may be overridden if beneficiary designations are...
It is common for people in Delaware to believe that wills are unnecessary if they do not have children. There are multiple reasons that writing a will is still important, even if a person is childless. When unmarried people without children die, their assets will pass...
As many Delaware residents know, estate planning is an important part of providing for one's family in the future. However, the benefits of having a revocable trust may add to family protection and make it easier for beneficiaries down the line. There are a number of...
Some Delaware residents may have heard that it is better to set up an estate plan without a will to avoid the delay, cost and lack of privacy that probating a will creates. While a will is still the best option in some circumstances, other vehicles for transferring...
Although estate planning may stir thoughts of aging parents in the minds of young Delaware residents, anyone of sufficient age to create an estate plan should consider doing so. The idea of assigning the passage of one's high school mementos on to parents or friends...
Many Delaware residents assume that an estate plan only deals with determining who will get a person's property after the death of the owner. While both trusts and wills do handle these issues, a complete estate plan will also deal with how the individual will be...