Financial elder abuse is a growing concern here in Arizona and nationally. It is estimated that at least five million seniors fall victim to financial elder abuse each year. Financial elder abuse is the illegal or improper use of a vulnerable adult or
Do You Have an Estate?
My business partner Shanna Tingom is a financial planner. She recently told me that one of her most frequently asked questions is, “What is the difference between a trust vs. an estate?” I actually hadn’t heard that one before. Shanna then told me the
Two Documents You Need If You Have Minors
Becky Cholewka: I wanted to share the importance of two documents that you need to really consider making if you haven't already done so. This is if you have minor children. The first document is a will. That's because a will in Arizona is the only pl
How Not To Get Legal Advice
AdviceAsset DistributionAsset ProtectionBeneficiariesEstate PlanningFinancesIndividual Retirement AccountsInheritanceJoint AccountsTrusteesTrusts
Becky Cholewka: I wanted to do a quick video on how not to get legal advice because, unfortunately, this is one of the biggest areas that I see a lot of people trip up on. A lot of people are getting legal advice from their tax person, their financial
Telephone Scam In Gilbert and Phoenix
Becky Cholewka: This is Josi in our office, and we were just recording another video about a scam alert that I'm aware of. Josi said after we turned off the video, "Hey, have you heard about this one? It just started happening to me." I'm going to let
Setting Up POD or TOD On Your Bank Accounts
Advance DirectivesAsset DistributionAsset ProtectionBeneficiariesBusiness PlanningDebt SettlementDisinheritanceDocumentsEstate PlanningFinancesIndividual Retirement AccountsInheritanceJoint AccountsOnline AccountsProbateWidowsWills
Becky Cholewka says: I wanted to take a moment and give you a couple tips about your checking savings and brokerage accounts. One way to make sure these accounts avoid the probate process is to make sure you have a beneficiary listed on each of your
How Often Should You Review Your Estate Plan?
Advance DirectivesAdvance Health Care DirectivesAsset DistributionAsset ProtectionBeneficiariesDocumentsEstate AdministrationEstate PlanningFuneral PlanningMedicare Advanced PlanningPower of AttorneySpecial Needs PlanningWill ChallengesWills
Becky Cholewka: I always like assigning homework to my clients. It's fun for me, because it's something that somebody else has to do instead of me. One of the things of homework that I always assign is to make sure that my clients pick an important d
How Often Should You Review Your Estate Plan?
Advance DirectivesAdvance Health Care DirectivesAsset DistributionAsset ProtectionBeneficiariesDocumentsEstate AdministrationEstate PlanningFuneral PlanningMedicare Advanced PlanningPower of AttorneySpecial Needs PlanningWill ChallengesWills
Becky Cholewka: I always like assigning homework to my clients. It's fun for me, because it's something that somebody else has to do instead of me. One of the things of homework that I always assign is to make sure that my clients pick an important d
Why San Tan Valley Home Owners Need To Check Their Deeds
Becky Cholewka: Hey, everyone. I just wanted to do another tip for today. We have been seeing a lot of deeds recently from people in the San Tan Valley area specifically, where when they purchased their home, their deed only said, "To husband and w
Probate in Arizona: Everything You Need to Know
A lot of angst seems to surround the word "probate," due mainly to general unfamiliarity with its meaning. Simply put, probate is the legal process that takes place upon a person's death, much of which is avoided if the decedent took proper steps during
Attorneys Get Paid per Word! And Other Untruths…
Why is my trust so long? As an estate planning attorney who provides comprehensive, solution-oriented planning documents to clients, I get this question almost every week. I have to chuckle, knowing that in the olden days attorneys did get paid per wor
Putting A Plant In Your Will?
Most wills include money for children and grandchildren. Some even leave money for the care of pets. But plants? Philodendron (Photo credit: Wikipedia) Strange is it may seem, that has now happened. A woman in Pennsylvania has set aside $5,000 i
How to Preserve the Vacation Home for Your Family
Estate planning is about more than passing on assets, it is about passing on a legacy, and a way of life. As a recent article explains, one way parents can pass on their way of life is to preserve the family vacation home for their children. Beach Hom
Finish Your Planning in 2014
(Photo credit: James Marvin Phelps) If you don't have an estate plan, a recent article suggests that one of your 2014 resolutions should be to create one. Everybody, without exception, can benefit from the creation of an estate plan. The article discu
California Intestacy
Intestate succession, also known as intestacy, is the process of distributing a decedent's assets when the decedent did not execute a last will and testament or distribute property through another instrument. State law determines how to distribute assets