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Legacy
Pass it on the way the wealthy do.
Beneficiary designations: the most common estate mistake
The form you filled in years ago can override your will. Why beneficiary designations matter so much, the errors families make, and how to check yours in an afternoon.
Blended family estate planning
When you remarry with children from earlier relationships, a simple 'everything to my spouse' plan can accidentally disinherit your kids. The tools blended families use to protect everyone.
Digital assets and passwords in your estate plan
Photos, email, online accounts, crypto and the passwords that unlock them can be lost forever without a plan. How to give the right people access, legally and safely.
Life insurance for estate equalization between heirs
When one child gets the business, the farm or the family home, life insurance can give the others a fair share in cash. How estate equalization works and where it can go wrong.
The 2026 estate and gift exemption, and annual exclusion gifting
The federal estate and gift exemption is $15 million per person in 2026, and you can give $19,000 a year to anyone without using it. What the 2025 law changed and how families use these rules.
Estate liquidity: why estates need cash
An estate can be worth millions and still be short of cash. Why that happens, what the bills are, and the ways families plan for liquidity, including the federal installment option.
Choosing a guardian for your children
If both parents die, a court decides who raises your children. A will lets you make that choice yourself. How to pick a guardian, plan the money, and avoid common gaps.
ILITs explained
An irrevocable life insurance trust keeps a policy's payout out of your taxable estate. How it works, what it costs you in control, and who it fits.
Leaving money to minors: UTMA accounts and trusts
Children usually cannot own money outright. The main ways to leave money to a minor, how each is taxed, and why age 18 or 21 can come sooner than you think.
Inherited IRAs and the 10-year rule
Most adult children who inherit an IRA must empty it within 10 years, and some must also take yearly withdrawals. Who the rules cover, the exceptions, and how to plan the tax.
Legacy letters and family meetings
Documents move money; conversations pass on meaning. How a legacy letter and a simple family meeting can prevent conflict and help heirs use what you leave well.
Passing a family business on
How families hand a business to the next generation: a written succession plan, a fair value, a funded buy-sell, and life insurance to treat every child fairly.
Planning for a child with special needs
Leaving money directly to a person with a disability can cost them vital benefits. How special-needs trusts, ABLE accounts and life insurance work together, with the 2026 rules.
Step-up in basis: why timing matters
Assets inherited at death usually get a fresh cost basis, which can wipe out years of capital gains for heirs. How the step-up works, what does not qualify, and why it shapes gifting decisions.
Survivorship (second-to-die) policies
One policy on two lives that pays at the second death. When couples use it for estate liquidity and special needs planning, and when they shouldn't.
Wealth replacement with charitable giving
Give an appreciated asset to a charitable remainder trust, take income for life, and use life insurance in a trust to replace what your heirs would have received.
Wills vs living trusts: which one does your family need?
A will tells a court what you want; a living trust lets your family skip much of the court process. Here is how each works, what each costs, and how to choose.
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