There’s nothing wrong with saving some dough by drafting your own estate-planning documents. You can find templates for basic wills and such online or in bookstores. But that should be followed with a review of those documents by an expert to insure everything is in order

Massachusetts estate planner Leanna Hamill, told AARP that, “Ninety percent of the online estate planning documents I see don’t do what the people think they’re going to do. I’ve seen people use online documents, documents out of estate-planning books or documents borrowed from friends. But they screw up their estate plan because they don’t understand the legal and technical aspects of the documents.”

Hamill told AARP that she knows of one client who signed a deed transferring his house to a trust but hadn’t properly created the trust. Thus, the deed had no effect. Another client’s confusion over the term “beneficiary” resulted in the immediate transfer of all his property to his children and required him to pay them an annual income, leaving his wife in the cold.

So even though you can do it yourself, err on the safe side and contact a professional like Jeffrey Weinstein 212-693-3737 for a free consultation.

Surveys show only 42 percent of U.S. adults currently have estate planning documents such as a will or living trust. For those with kids under 18, it’s even lower, just 36 percent.

People don’t like thinking about death especially their own.That study was conducted in January by Princeton Survey Research Associates International, who asked 1,003 adults whether they currently have estate-planning documents in case of their death, and if not, why not?

Forty-seven percent said, “I just haven’t gotten around to it.” This is not surprising to experts, who say an aversion to end-of-life planning is not only rooted in fear but also procrastination.
Debbi King, author of “The ABC’s of Personal Finance” says, “This is the ‘I’m going to live forever’ theory. No one literally thinks that, but we all want to believe we are going to live until our 80s or 90s so we don’t think we need a will right now. This isn’t true, of course. We all have an expiration date and no one knows exactly when it will be. The best thing you can do for your loved ones is have a will now.”

The Law Offices of Jeffrey Weinstein is here to help you with all your estate planning needs. Call us for a free consultation.

New York doesn’t charge inheritance tax, but the estate tax comes with one big provision. Though December 31st of this year there is a $5.5 million exemption which means if the value of the estate is less than $5.5 million, the estate tax is waived.

That tax is in addition to the federal estate tax that hits individual estates worth more than $11,180,000 between gross assets and prior taxable gifts to pay within nine months of the individual’s death. You can get a six-month extension. But chances are you don’t have an estate worth $11 million. Only a few thousand people do.

New York estate property categories

There are only two categories in New York: personal property and real property, Real property is what you probably think it is; land and houses. Personal property is everything else. New York is not a community property state so the surviving spouse doesn’t automatically inherit the deceased’s property.

It does, however have what they call a spousal right of election when deciding on inheritances for spouses. This law states that should a spouse pass away, his or her spouse will receive an “elective share” of $50,000 or one-third of the decedent’s estate. Should a spouse not receive this elective share, he or she has the right to file for it as long as it’s within a six-month window after an executor for the estate has been named.

Importance of a will

If you die with a will in New York things are normally pretty straight forward, but it will still need to go through probate and people can challenge the will. There are ways to avoid probate and the Law Offices of Jeffrey Weinstein can help you avoid probate.

The State entitles surviving spouses who have disinherited them to a piece of their estate. But this is limited to non-probate assets, such as property held in joint tenancy or a jointly held brokerage account paid on death to beneficiaries.

Dying without a will

An administration proceeding is the most common legal event that occurs in New York if you die without a valid will, but you own property. If when you pass away you don’t have a will, your estate consists of either jointly-owned or no real property, and your personal property is worth less than $30,000, you must file as a small estate.

Without a will, if you only own real property, it goes to your nearest relative.

There are other issues involve in estate planning and the law offices of Jeffrey Weinstein (212) 693-3737 can help you navigate the process to lessen the hassle for you and your heirs.

The first thing you need to do is assemble a team. Working with a team of different professionals can help parents manage both the financial and non-financial aspects of providing care. Consider working with the following:

Caregiver: While family often provides care for children with special needs, working with a caregiver can help manage the challenges of providing care and addressing everyday responsibilities. The cost will be commensurate with the level of care needed so determining the need is important when creating a budget for care.

Attorney: An attorney specializing in estate planning can create a special needs trust which will protect assets for a beneficiary with special needs while preserving the ability to qualify for government programs. Having an updated and living will with the names of a guardian and trustee are important in making sure care is provided in accordance with your wishes. A letter of intent can also be a helpful document for caregivers. While it is not legally binding, a letter of intent can provide an outline of important information such as medical history, family history, information about your child’s preferences and your wishes for the type of care they should receive.

Accountant: If you provide care to a child or dependent with special needs, you may qualify to take advantage of certain tax deductions for medical expenses, tax credits, and tax-advantaged accounts. For individuals disabled before the age of 26, a 529A account can provide tax-free growth and use of money to improve health and quality of life.

Financial Advisor: Some financial advisors specialize in working with families that have special needs children or dependents. A financial advisor can help coordinate the services of other professionals on the team while providing specific recommendations on how to fund and protect accounts for disabled dependents.

Utilize government benefits

The Social Security Administration provides two of the largest assistance programs to disabled individuals: Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). The SSI program provides income for individuals with disabilities that have incomes which fall below certain levels and can be available to children who are blind or disabled as early as birth. The SSDI program provides a benefit for those who have work history but have been unable to work for a minimum of one year. Additional programs such as housing assistance, educational and vocational training, and nutrition assistance are also available.

In Notice 2018-61, the IRS and Treasury say they plan to release regulations to provide clarification on the effect of section 67(g) of the tax code on the deductibility of certain expenses described in section 67(b) and (e) that are incurred by estates and non-grantor trusts.

One way some wealthy peeople are getting around the new law is by setting up limited liability companies for their residences in high-tax states such as here in New York and then transferring interests in them to separate trusts set up in low-tax states like Alaska, where each trust can claim up to a $10,000 deduction for property taxes.

Four northeastern states have sued the govt over the new law as we wrote about here: 4 Northeastern states sue Trump administration.

According to Bloomberg, the elite private banks say $25 million is just get you in the door, rich. To most $25 million is a non-attainablke dream but to the private bankers, it’s the basic tier.

But don’t get the idea that these bankers turn up their noses at those with just a puny few million. Bloomberg quotes Brent Beardsley of Northern trust Corp. who said 505 of their new clients have assets in excess of $10 million, “but to get to the highest level companies have raised the bar.”

What makes people rich these days has changed in the last 20 plus years. In 1994 what made someone rich was $3 million and now $25 million is high net worth.

Procrastination

Surveys have found that not only do 50% of people with children not have a will, many don’t have any other estate planning documents drawn up. This applies not just to young people but older retired Americans in all income categories.

People quite often don’t want to deal with estate matters because it means they have to think about their death. They also make the mistake of thinking their assets will automatically go to their surviving spouse or kids. That all depends on the state law. Different states have different laws.

Not signing your will

So you have drawn up a will. Good for you. But have you signed it? That might sound like a stupid question but It is not uncommon for people to draw up a detailed will, take it to their attorney and forget to sign it. Without your signature, it’s just a piece of paper.

Updating beneficiaries

You may think your assets will go to your spouse after you die, but another big mistake is not updating who you beneficiaries will be. If you remarried you might have forgot to update your will. The court system is littered with people battling it out over inheritances because the deceased forgot to update their will and their money went to their ex,

These are just three common mistake in estate planning. Consult a good estate attorney for more detailed information on what you need.

While federal tax laws allow you to transfer up to $14,000 a year without having to pay a gift tax, Medicaid still treats that as a transfer an it can delay your benefits. Any transfer you make will be looked at no matter what the amount or reason. Even if you give money for an anniversary, birthday or a charity could count for a penalty.

If, all of a sudden you become Diamond Jim Brady an start spending money that will prompt the State to look into what you are spending it on.

While most transfers are penalized, there are some that are exempt and when you go into a nursing home these won’t count against you.

You can transfer these assets to the following people and not have to worry about the waiting period.

• your spouse
• a child who is blind or permanently disabled
• a trust for the sole benefit of anyone under age 65 who is permanently disabled

Also, you can transfer your home to the above people as well as the following:

• a child who is under age 21
• a child who has lived in your home for at least two years prior to your moving to a nursing home and who provided you with care that allowed you to stay at home during that time
• a sibling who already has an equity interest in the house and who lived there for at least a year before you moved to a nursing home

For more info Medicaid’s transfer rules, click here.

Since the idea of no leaving a federal tax burden to their heirs, many people are questioning the need for estate planning since one of the main reasons to estate plan is to lessen the tax burden. But there is more to estate planning than tax issues.

Kiplinger.com has a very useful piece by Tracy Craig. Craig is a Fellow at the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. She has some useful info on estate planning beyond taxes.

To read more click on the links below:

State Estate and Inheritance Taxes Exist for Many

Probate Can be Costly

Many Beneficiaries Have Issues

Blended Families are Common and Can Be Complicated

According to the IRS, collectibles includes works of art, rugs, antiques, any metal or gem (with exceptions), any stamp or coin (with exceptions), valuable alcoholic beverages or “any other tangible personal property that the IRS determines is a “collectible” under IRC Section 408(m)”.

Quite often people don’t have any idea how much their collections are worth which is why when you are doing your estate planning it is in your and your heirs interests to find out. If you plan on bequeathing your collectibles, it is a necessity.

If you own any antiques or other collectibles you should decide how you want to distribute them after you die. You can either donate them to charity or leave them to heirs. The problem is collectibles fall into special laws separate from other assets. That is why you need to appoint someone who knows the value of your collectibles. Experts say you should contact at least two dealers or auction houses that deal in your type(s) of collectibles. They will come in handy for whoever settles your estate. They will know how much your collection is worth which can prevent any fighting among heirs, each of whom may have a different idea of their worth.

By having this information it will also prevent a clueless heir from selling any objects for less than their fair market value. It is good to remember that even if your heirs decide to keep the assets rather than sell them, they will still need to know the value of your “objects” to establish the total value of your estate.

We posted the WXYZ video story about this scandal last year. Probate public administrator in Michigan cashes in on other people’s estates…legally

Barbara Andruccioli was one of the lawyers exposed by Detriot’s WXYZ 7 News investigation into collusion between probate attorneys and estate brokers to cheat heirs. She was recently hired by the Oakland County Probate Court at a taxpayer cost of $102,000/year. Channel 7 investigator asked Anruccioli, “How can the taxpayers have any confidence with you working here?” Andruccioli answered, “Really, I think you probably need to talk to the judges.”

Andruccioli was a partner at Kemp Klein law firm and an Attorney General-appointed Public Administrator: a public official with the authority to open probate estates after someone dies if there are no heirs available.

WXYZ reports

Andruccioli was a partner at Kemp Klein law firm. She was also an Attorney General-appointed Public Administrator, a public official with the authority to open probate estates after someone dies if there are no heirs available.

Court records show Andruccioli teamed up with real estate broker Ralph Roberts and his companies to open those estates, sell the homes, and cash in.

WXYZ uncovered court filings showing “Andruccioli and one of Roberts’ companies, Probate Asset Recovery, were billing for thousands of dollars, while the actual heirs ended up with very little.”

After the station’s investigation, Attorney General Bill Schuette terminated Andruccioli as a Public Administrator and the FBI and Oakland County Sheriff’s detectives raided Ralph Roberts offices, and launched a criminal probe into the Public Administrators.

Oakland County Clerk Lisa Brown told the station that her reaction when she first heard of the hiring was “Shock, absolute shock and bewilderment… So out of having a wonderful pool of applicants, why would you choose this person who has a cloud over them?”

Joan Antoniello, of Mazurs USA Wealth Advisors told Bloomberg News, ““For the mega wealthy, it’s really a window of opportunity that’s limited.”
Dynasty trusts let the richest Americans protect and preserve wealth for generations, while minimizing tax bills. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin appears to have used one prior to assuming his government role. They can be funded tax-free with assets up to the exemption limit, which was $10.98 million in 2017 for couples, even though complex tax-planning techniques can get around that threshold.

Blloomberg reports that about a dozen of the nation’s top wealth planners say they’re seeing “increased interest in the trusts as clients look to capitalize on the additional $11 million they can now easily shift over. Some families want to transfer money out of their estates into the trusts in case Democrats take back control of Congress and pull the limits back down before 2025, while others say it’s best to move assets before they appreciate even more.”

Estimates are the new rules affect fewer than 2,000 families per year, but billions of dollars are at stake. A University of California, Berkeley study found that 0.1% of families control a growing share of U.S. wealth, from an estimated 7 percent in 1978 to 22 percent in 2012. The net worth of the wealthy has zoomed even higher in recent years as values of stocks, real estate and private businesses have climbed.

In your will, you can bequeath your hardcover book collection and your vinyl records, but your digital music and books are a different matter. The big difference is a rights issue. In this new digital economy, most companies don’t grant you ownership, but rather simply a license to use the product.

It’s not like buying a physical book which you own outright and most people don’t read the “Terms of Use” on their digital purchases.

For example, Amazon and Apple grant non-transferable right right which means you can bequeath any bought music in your iTunes library or Kindle. Amazon’s Terms of Use says, “You do not acquire any ownership rights in the software or music content.”

So, it looks like your e-music and books die with you? Maybe yes. Maybe no. One easy legal way around this conundrum might be to continue to listen/read the digital content on the deceased’s devices. As long as you have the passwords and login info, no harm, no foul. Another way is to pay and get an online safe deposit box that stores digital information like passwords and login information.

Until the law catches up with the digital culture, people will need to come up with various ways to own what they paid money for.

In her will, Bronx widow Ellen Frey-Wouters left $300,000 to Troy and Tiger, her two cats. Her will instructed the money be used to make sure they would “never be caged” and always be lovingly cared for.

The New York Post quotes Dahlia Grizzleto, a former health aide Frey-Wouters and now caretaker of the cats as saying, “He deserves it… He’s a wonderful cat.”

Frey-Wouters, who died in 2015 was born in the Netherlands and worked for the United Nations. Her husband, a Brooklyn College professor, passed away in 1989, and the couple’s only child died in infancy.

Troy lives with Rita Pohila, another one of Frey-Wouters’ former home health aides. Pohila, declined to discuss Troy with The Post — invoking the shy feline’s “privacy” rights. Tiger made out like a bandit.He was a former alley cat who i snow living large in Ocala, Florida, dining on filet- ­mignon-flavored Fancy Feast and bedding down in a plush faux-fur bed with silk lining.

Frey-Wouters attorney, Irwin Fingerit was surprised the the bequest

“I said I didn’t think, you know, $300,000 was necessary, and I pointed out the case of the Queen of Mean, Leona Helmsley, who left $65,000 to a dog and became sort of a laughingstock,’’ Fingerit said during a 2016 hearing about the gift. (Helmsley actually left $12 million to her Maltese, Trouble.)

“But no, no, [Frey-Wouters] insisted,” Fingerit said. “She wanted to make sure they were taken care of.”

When the cats die, the balance of their trust fund will go to Frey-Wouters’ only living family member, a sister in the Netherlands.

This delay can result in significant financial hardship for the family and estate of the deceased policyholder, as they wait for the proceeds of the life assurance policy,” said Joe Charles from Royal London.

“We are now calling on the Government to consider our proposals for improvements which are aimed at increasing efficiency and speeding up the probate system.”

The company found six months was the shortest time for probate in Ireland. The longest was over three years. But once probate was over, it took less than a week for claims to be processed and payments made..

By contrast, in the UK probate takes an average of three to four weeks.

Here in New York, not all estates must go through probate. If an estate falls below a certain threshold, it is considered a “small estate” and doesn’t require court supervision to be settled.

You can use the Small Estate Affidavit Program

• If the decedent (the person who died) passed away between August 29, 1996 and December 31, 2008 AND had $20,000 or less in personal property (not land or buildings).
• If the decedent passed away after January 1, 2009 AND had $30,000 or less in personal property.
• If the decedent owned real property, he/she owned it jointly

For more information: Small Estate Affidavit Program

Attorney T.M. Zink ,an Iowa lawyer who died in 1930, left his daughter only five dollars and his wife got zilch. He stipulated that the rest of his $100,000 estate be put in a trust for 75 years and then used to create the Zink Womanless Library. Yup, it is exactly what it sounds like. The library was to have nothing created by women.

• “No woman shall at any time, under any pretense or for any purpose, be allowed inside the library, or upon the premises or have any say about anything concerned therewith, nor appoint any person or persons to perform any act connected therewith.”
• “No book, work of art, chart, magazine, picture, unless some production by a man, shall be allowed inside or outside the building, or upon the premises, and this shall include all decorations for inside and outside the building.”
• “There shall be over each entrance to the premises and building a sign in these words: ‘No Woman Admitted.’”
• “It is my intention to forever exclude all women from the premises and having anything to say or do with the trust estate and library. …”

My intense hatred of women is not of recent origin or development nor based upon any personal differences I ever had with them but is the result of my experiences with women, observations of them, and study of all literatures and philosophical works within my limited knowledge relating thereto.

The library would have no feminine decorations, no books or magazine articles by female authors, and was required to have “No Women Admitted” carved into the stone over the entrance.

Other weirdness:

Pringles founder, Fred Baur, stated in his will that he wanted to be cremated and buried inside a Pringles can. His children honored his request to bury him in one of the cans by placing part of his cremated remains in a Pringles container in his grave.

NYC hotel owner, Leona Helmsley, known as the “Queen of Mean” left $12 million to her Maltese dog, and her family with next to nothing. Her heirs disputed the will and a court ruled the should get nly $ 2 million.

German Poet Heinrich Heine left his entire fortune to his wife, but with a catch. In order to inherit, she had to remarry “because then there will be at least one man to regret my death.”

Janis Joplin updated her will just two days before her death. She set aside $2,500 to pay for a posthumous all-night party for 200 guests at her favorite pub in San Anselmo, California, “so my friends can get blasted after I’m gone.”

A son suspected of stabbing to death his mother and sister at their $2 million home had been cut out of the family’s fortune just weeks earlier.The son, Joshua Cohen, 27, was arrested on Saturday after his mother Leah, 66, and sister Hannah, 33 were found murdered in their home London last Friday. Police described the murder as “a devastating attack”.

Mr Cohen’s late father Asher was one of the founders of the world renowned Beigel Bake in Brick Lane, London. Asher, who died in December aged 81, arrived in the UK from Israel in the 1960s and worked at his brother’s bakery next door before branching out and opening his bagel business. He set up Beigel Bake with his brother and another partner in 1974 and it was first Britain’s first bagel bakery. It is known for its salt beef bagel.

Probate on his estate was granted on July 27th and on the same day the directorship of the Beigel Bake empire was changed to list two of Cohen’s brothers as directors.

A family friend quoted by the Daily Mail said, ‘They’re a really nice family, but I know Josh has struggled for years with his mental illness. It’s terrible what’s happened.’

There are many different types of trusts. But more broadly, every trust is either revocable or irrevocable. Unless the drafter of the trust explicitly says so, a trust is irrevocable

There are advantages and disadvantages of each kind of trust. The irrevocable trust offers an estate plan more utility and protection from creditors than a revocable trust would. irrevocable trusts offer asset protection, the ability to reduce estate taxes, and enables the settler to be eligible for Medicaid funds.

Should your primary concern be your ability to keep and stay in your home during your lifetime and that of your spouse, creating an irrevocable trust, with provisions allowing you to stay in your home, is a good solution. Creating an irrevocable trust secures your right to live in your home and avoid probate taxes for your heirs after you die. However, if at some point decide to sell your home, the irrevocable trust may eliminate that option.

Your creditors will be unable to reach the assets of an irrevocable trust that you create so long as there is no evidence of overt fraud or debt avoidance. This makes an irrevocable trust a powerful tool to still provide for your loved ones, despite having burdening debts on your finances. Moreover, this even includes the creditors of a beneficiary of the irrevocable trust. If the beneficiary has little or no control over the assets of the trust, the creditors will be unable to reach those assets.

An irrevocable trust also will minimize estate taxes by allowing a surviving spouse to obtain a federal estate tax exemption on the assets you placed in the irrevocable trust. The only caveat there is that the assets of the trust may still be taxed as a gift when the trust is created if the assets exceed the allowable threshold.

An irrevocable trust will also comply with Medicaid laws to ensure the settler may be eligible to receive benefits. Under the Medicaid laws, assets held in a revocable trust—assets that you can withdraw or seek benefits from—remain part of the settlor’s estate. Thus, you will remain eligible for Medicaid despite having significant funds in an irrevocable trust.

Because of the many nuances and complex laws in this area of law, it is essential that you retain a New York trusts attorney

Known as the Dead Man’s Statute, the law states that in New York, the surviving spouse is entitle to collect certain assets, even if the will bequeaths them to someone else. The surviving spouse is entitled to one-third of the estate if it is valued at over $50,000. That includes joint bank accounts and other assets. The law was designed to prevent perjury by prohibiting a witness who is an interested party from testifying about their “communications” with a deceased person

Mr. Berk’s caregiver, Hua Wang, secretly married him and wanted to testify about her relationship with her deceased husband. Ingram ruled that since she had a financial interest in the outcome of her testimony, she would be barred her from giving what would be a one-sided testimony. The issue was whether she forfeited her ability to exercise her right of election since she had an interest in the outcome of the case.