A Last Will and Testament (“LWT”) is a way to not only protect your assets, but also establish to whom your property is assign upon your death. Despite this being a vital document in your estate plan, many people never execute a LWT. While Davis, Davis & Associates, P.C. recommends having all estate planning documents […]
An Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust (ILIT) is an irrevocable trust used to protect your assets from probate. Like the name suggests, ILIT’s are a way to remove life insurance policies from your estate, enabling you to bypass those pesky estate taxes. Here is the breakdown: You are the grantor of the trust, meaning you fund […]
Qualified Personal Residence Trusts, or QPRT’s, are another kind of irrevocable trust used to protect your real property. At the conclusion of a QPRT term, you gift your property to the trust beneficiaries. Because property ownership transfers upon the end of the trust term, if you want to remain living at the property, you will […]
Credit Shelter Trusts (CSTs), commonly referred to as a bypass trust, B trust, exemption trust, or family trust, is an irrevocable trust used to help married couples transfer assets upon their death to their surviving spouse and, ultimately, their children. Because the trust is irrevocable, the trust provisions must be detailed in order to accommodate […]
Estate planning ensures that all of your assets are wrapped up according to your wishes before you die. One of the noteworthy aspects about estate planning is that it caters to all walks of life; rather than exclude certain groups, estate planning takes into account everyone, even those with special needs. Our goal at Davis, […]
Estate planning raises complex questions like what happens to my car when I die; what happens to my money; what do I do to ensure my remains are taken care of according to my wishes? All of these are excellent questions; however, one of the most notable is what happens to my home? A potential […]
If you’ve had any medical procedure done lately or if you’ve been admitted to the hospital, you’ve likely been asked if you have a Living Will or an Advance Directive that you want to be placed on file. While these documents vary from state-to-state, in Alabama, an Advance Directive is a set of written instructions […]
Part of running a successful family business is planning for its future. Whether you’re the third generation to take over operations or you started the business from the ground up, with nothing but $100 in the bank, it’s important to make sure the future is bright for your business and won’t be squandered due to […]
Much of our discussions surrounding estate planning focus on the elderly community, but good estate planning is vital throughout one’s adult life. The idea is to get some foundational documents in place early on, and update those documents throughout your life, as circumstances change. For young adults, it’s not always the case that they are […]
While using a living trust can help your loved ones avoid the nasty business of probate proceedings, trust administration is not without its obstacles and it’s usually up to the named Trustee to make sure to sidestep those obstacles. Just like when naming an Executor for a Will, it’s critical to name someone as your […]