Blog: Estate Planning
Tampa Estate Planning Lawyer: Planning Your Estate Means Answering These Questions
What happens to you and your “stuff” if you should become incapacitated or pass away? Who is in charge of taking care of your finances in the event of an illness or accident that leaves you unable to take care of things yourself? Who is in charge of conveying your...
Estate Planning and Age-Gap Marriages: Special Considerations
While it’s common for married partners to not be the same age, it’s less common to have a significant age gap. A gap of ten years or more may mean that one spouse retires well before the other, or that the younger spouse only has minor children with the older spouse...
Brandon Estate Planning Lawyer: 6 Considerations When Choosing an Executor or Successor Trustee
The decision of who to appoint as your executor or trustee is a huge one, which is why it’s so important to make the right choice when creating your estate plan. Remember, this person will hold incredible responsibility for overseeing what becomes of your estate. You...
Estate Planning in Florida For Individuals Without Children
It’s a common misconception that estate planning is only important for people with adult or minor children. While parents do look to estate planning lawyers to name legal guardians who can raise minor kids if something happens to mom or dad and protect an inheritance...
Tampa Will And Trust Lawyer: How to Sell Property That’s in a Revocable Living Trust
As a Tampa will and trust lawyer, I’m often asked what the process looks like to sell a house if it’s moved into a Revocable Living Trust. People worry that they will need to ask permission from someone to sell their home, or that it will be difficult to put the house...
What to Do If the Bank Says Your Power of Attorney is “Too Old” | Brandon Estate Planning Lawyer
Lending institutions and brokerage firms continue to tighten up their policies regarding the types of power of attorney documents that they will or will not take. We frequently receive calls from people who are standing at the bank trying to complete a transaction...
Brandon Estate Planning Lawyer on What to Do When Your Parent Needs Help Managing Money
What can I do to help my parent manage money? This is a question that, as a Brandon estate planning lawyer, I hear from adult children who are worried that their elderly parent can no longer handle their personal finances. Seniors often have financial difficulties...
Brandon Will and Trust Lawyer: 6 Steps to Starting Your Estate Plan
When it comes to creating an estate plan, most people procrastinate for understandable reasons. For starters, no one likes to think about their death or the possibility that they could become disabled or otherwise unable to care for themselves. On the financial side,...
Teachers and Coronavirus: 4 Estate Planning Documents to Have in Place
As colleges and schools attempt to restart in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, our Tampa will lawyers have been hearing from many teachers who want to learn more about putting an estate plan in place. Some have even told us that their Teacher’s Unions have...
Can I Change or Revoke a Power of Attorney? | Brandon Estate Planning Lawyer
A power of attorney, or POA, is a document that allows you to authorize another person to make decisions on your behalf. In this case, you are called the principal, the one granting authority. The person whom you grant authority to is called the agent or...
Tampa Estate Planning Attorneys: 5 Situations When You Should Update Your Living Trust
Most Tampa estate planning attorneys recommend that their clients re-evaluate their plans every few years. Part of that review should include taking a look at your Revocable Living Trust to ensure it's up-to-date. However, in between these regular review periods, you...
Brandon Will Lawyer: What to Know Before Setting Up a Life Estate
A life estate is a form of ownership of real property. Essentially, it gives someone the right to occupy and enjoy the full use of a property until the life tenant’s death. Creating a life estate is a strategy commonly used by seniors who wish to retain their rights...
Tampa Will and Estate Lawyer Answers, “Will My Old Estate Planning Documents Still Work if I Get COVID-19?”
Florida appears to be experiencing an early “second wave” or, at the very least, an uptick in coronavirus cases. We’ve been hearing from countless Tampa-area residents who have questions about their estate plans, and specifically whether any older documents they...
Tampa Probate Lawyer Answers, “Can I Assume or Take Over Someone’s Mortgage When They Die?”
Most people have mortgages on their homes, and loved ones are often surprised that a mortgage doesn’t magically disappear when the property owner passes away. We often hear from heirs who want to know what their options are for dealing with an outstanding mortgage as...
Tips for Managing an Out-of-State Probate Due to COVID-19 | Hillsborough County Probate Lawyers
Florida is unique in that many of our residents split their time between our state and other parts of the country during the warmer months. As such, “snowbirds” (or even their families), may find themselves dealing with an exceptionally challenging problem during the...