Protecting assets-Don t wait to get it done. Lessons on protecting assets can come in the most unexpected ways. I spent Saturday on the beach in Sarasota with my wife and a couple of friends. The water was sparkling blue and we decided to sit on that gorgeous white sand for awhile enjoy the scenery and just talk.

As we sat there, suddenly I heard a slap and saw something fly over my head. I really couldn’t put together what was happening, so I looked around. My friend got the most interesting look on his face; he looked bewildered and then angry. It was then I noticed a fish sitting on the beach behind him.

Suddenly I was able to understand what was happening. The birds flying over our heads had fought over a fish and it had dropped on his shoulder. I pointed out what had happened and he started to laugh. He told me that he thought I had slapped him on the shoulder with my wet hand and wondered how I could be so rude.

As we assessed the situation, we realized that his shirt was covered with fish scales and blood. The fish smell was strong and he laughingly said, “It is sure a good thing that I came prepared with extra clothes.” He practiced Protecting assets-Don t wait theory.

Protecting assets-Don t wait- Is Important

Knowing when you will need asset protection often isn’t something you can predict in advance. That is why protecting assets-Don t wait theory is important. It is like sitting on the beach. Protecting your home and other assets is a critical responsibility that you should take care of now. With the falling home values, dwindling stock market, high unemployment and many Americans voicing an entitlement attitude, your assets just aren’t as safe as they used to be.

Look around if you have a home, a bank account or a small business. You can bet it is only a matter of time before somebody is going to try and take them away from you. If you are a professional, protecting assets from your patients or clients is something you have to do today. If you have investment real estate, protecting assets from your tenants is critical. If you are just making good money today, you need to protect your assets from the tax man.  The Knowing when you will need asset protection often isn’t something you can predict in advance. That is why Protecting assets-Don t wait theory is important.

Knowing how to protect your assets requires you understand and know how to use the law. The sad truth is that many attorneys really don’t worry about protecting assets-Don t wait. They are just as happy to have you “fall into a trap,” because they make the big bucks digging you out of the trap.

Before a fish falls out of the sky and you get in trouble, take the time to protect your home and assets and prevent financial disaster. Once you have made the effort to use the “Protecting assets-Don’t wait theory” to put your asset protection in place, it is amazing the confidence it will give you. When you have finished your asset protection, it increases your business capacity. You will have the confidence to go out and make deals and take risks because you no longer need to worry about losing your assets. You no longer need to live in fear. You can better enjoy life. If you need some help putting together a plan, look at my book, Protecting Your Financial Future, or my  Easy Estate Planning Course.

© 2012 Legalees Corporation

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The Hatfield-McCoy feud  history miniseries brings to my mind the troubles that families get into when parents neglect their estate planning. Families are at their weakest at the death of a loved one. In this compromised state, it is easy for feelings to be hurt and lasting family battles ensue. Estate planning is one of the best ways to prevent a future family feud.

If you are not familiar with story, the Hatfield-McCoy feud took place in the mountainous region that separates West Virginia from Kentucky known as the Tug River Valley. In the late 1800s, Randle McCoy accused Floyd Hatfield of stealing his hog. The dispute ended up in court and a jury of six McCoys and six Hatfields heard the case. At the end of the trial, one of the McCoys voted with the Hatfields for acquittal. That McCoy worked for the Hatfields and cast his vote to save his job. The McCoys felt cheated and several armed confrontations between the families followed. The ill will between the families escalated and violence between the families began in earnest. This feud became legend.

You may be saying to your self my brother and I would never fight over anything. That may be right, but I have seen time and again that when the parents die, children often try to get material things to help them fill the loss. They may not understand this Hatfield-McCoy feud psychological response, but it is very real. The item represents to them the love of their parent. If they are denied the item, it is like suffering through a second death. I know of a case where one brother shot his other three siblings because of a fight over the family cabin. I have seen many cases where the siblings have not spoken to each other for years.

And it is not enough to just get a will. Sure the will may divide your property up, but what about the doilies and dollies? Dad only has one shotgun, and there is only one doll cradle that he made by hand. In my family, we all remembered playing Pollyanna with our grandma. When she passed on, every one of my 56 cousins wanted that Pollyanna game board, but there was only one. I have seen fights over very trivial items tear families apart. Don’ let your family become a Hatfield-McCoy legend. In my book, Protecting Your Financial Future, I cover how to fairly and legally dispose of your personal items so that your kids can be mad at you, but not their siblings.

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Tax Audit

A Tax audit comes with taxes. April 15 is here and as you file your taxes, you may be thinking about tax audit defense. If you haven’t, you should be. I was shocked to read in Bloomberg that Uncle Sam is auditing more Americans than ever before. In the year 2000, 1 in every 203 Americans were audited. By last year the number had more than doubled to 1 in every 92 who face an audit. That is a pretty high percentage.

Of course you want to do every thing you can to save taxes. Statistics show that Americans devote 2 hours and 13 minutes of every eight-hour workday, or over a quarter of their working hours (27.7%), to paying Uncle Sam. Even more disturbing is that if we add the federal deficit to the picture—if the government collected enough in taxes during 2012 to balance the budget—it would take half of our earnings to pay Uncle Sam.

Tax Audits and Loopholes

What this means is that there is an ever increasing incentive to find loopholes to save on your taxes and that is okay. The important thing to remember if you want to avoid a tax audit is to check for math errors or computation errors before you submit your form. Take your time to make certain the form is filled out with the correct information.

I have also heard that you are less likely to face a tax audit if you fill out your own forms. I don’t know it that is true or not. Of course, there is no sure way to prevent an audit, but being careful could go a long way.

If you want to explore other good tax saving strategies and thus avoid  a tax audit, you need to consider the benefits of owning a small business. You can learn about the popular LLC (Limited Liability Company) structure Here. They are fairly easy to setup and maintain.

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It looks like Carnival, the cruise line will take a $90 million hit. Their cruise ship, the Costa Concordia capsized off the west coast of Grosseto, Italy on Friday January 13. This unlucky event not only stranded almost 4,200 people; more than a dozen lost their lives. NBC News reported that Captain Francesco Schettino steered the ship too close to shore thereby hitting some rocks. As the massive ship lay on its side rescuers are trying to find additional bodies.

The sad thing about the Costa Concordia tragedy is that the terrific cost of life and property could have been avoided. You may be shaking your head in disbelief, but while you are wondering how the captain could be so careless, ask yourself this: “Have I put my personal affairs in order?” “Do I have the vital four estate planning documents that would prevent my financial life from grinding against the rocky shoals of disaster?” If something happens to you tomorrow could your family take care of your personal affairs? Or would they have to go to court to get permission? Navigating the legal waters of a medical disaster is not only time consuming and expensive for your family. It is very difficult. It can be made easier if you have put your documents in place. Take a minute to put your financial ship on a safe course.

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Kim Jong Il, who ruled over North Korea for decades died Saturday of a supposed heart failure. The 69-year-old had lived a decadent life and shocked the world with his eccentric tastes and stretching the truth about his life and conquests.  The West will not miss him.  I perked up when I heard a reporter question how he died.  His son, Kim Jong Un, is next in line to assume his father’s rule and maybe getting the power made the early demise of his father a very attractive idea.  In North Korea things are not always reported accurately.

The cause of Kim Jong Il’s death really doesn’t matter, but the report made me think how important it is to get your estate planning taken care of and take care of inheritance issues early.  I don’t know anyone who wants the sharks swimming around them in anticipation of their inheritance.  The time to take care of your estate planning is early.  Every estate should include a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care.  This document helps ensure that you avoid the possible problem that Kim Jung Il may have had. By citing who and how your final decisions are made, you can control your health care, even when you are too sick to make the choices yourself.  Usually I recommend that two unrelated doctors help in this choice.  That can put greedy beneficiaries at bay.  The important thing is to get it done.

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I was talking with my mom the other day when she made the comment that she hoped that they had enough to support themselves for the rest of their lives. She added she had always hoped to leave the kids a legacy, but now she was afraid that is not going to happen. My dad has always been a good provider and I am sure this is difficult for both of them. With the economy in shambles my parents are faced with a falling home value, dwindling retirement savings, and inflation on the basic commodities they need to live. They are not alone. The sad truth is that older Americans are racking up serious debt.

Debt among Americans between the ages of 65 and 74 is growing faster than for any other age group. The latest figures available from the Federal Reserve, show the median debt level of that age group was $40,130, up from $27,458 in 2004. Strategic Business Insights’ Macromonitor conducted a separate survey and established that Americans 75 and older carried an average of $7,200 in credit-card debt in 2010, triple the level of 2008.

How do you deal with your parent’s debt. I read an article the other day that seemed to indicate that if your parents didn’t have a will, you wouldn’t have to go to probate and you would not be responsible to pay their debts. I can see how the reporter put a limited knowledge of the law together and came up with this conclusion. I was worried that older folks would see this article and avoid estate planning to get out of their debts and maybe leave something for their children. The reality is that this will not work, even though it is true that nobody in the United States is responsible for the debt of another. When someone dies the law is set up so that you must pay the debts before you distribute their estate.

Here are the facts. Let’s say your parents owe $8,527 on their Bank of America credit card. They also own all of their property in a trust. When they die, because of the trust, you do not have to go to probate to get control of their assets, but if you don’t pay off their debts, any creditor can start a probate proceeding and require the estate to settle the debt. So, Bank of America could file a probate in your parent’s name and then they would become the executor of the estate. It would be very awkward, and more costly,  to have Bank of America control your parent’s estate. So do help your parents understand that the estate will have to pay their debts. And if a trust is in place and funded correctly, it can help the family avoid a costly probate.

©Legalees Corporation 2012

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Some thieves will use the deceased information to get duplicate driver’s licenses and birth certificates.  They take these documents and use them to get credit.  Others target grieving family members with all kinds of scams.  Nobody needs that during an already tragic time.  This is so prevalent that I always council my clients to make no financial decisions for six months after the funeral.  Another problem is securing your home. In our neighborhood some of the men actually stay at the deceased’s home during the funeral because we have had robberies occur during funerals.

As you prepare your obituary, here is some information to leave out. Never give your exact birth date or address. This makes it harder for identity thieves to track down your information. It also keeps robbers away from your house. Don’t give out the full names of other living relatives; thieves will sometimes access and use their information.

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You may have read that

Mrs Bettencourt’s lawyer plans to appeal the decision, but for now Liliane Bettencourt wealth and property is being controlled by her daughter Francoise Bettencourt-Meyers.

Mrs. Bettencourt and her daughter have been involved in a very public feud over the fate of the L’Oreal fortune, France’s third-largest estate, for many years with her daughter arguing that her mother is mentally unfit to manage her wealth.

This is the very type of case that can be prevented if you have signed a Durable Power for Healthcare.    Under the terms of this document you can define how you will be determined incompetent and who will take over managing your estate.  You do not need to have someone who you hate take over your affairs.

The important thing is to make certain that you sign this document before you get in trouble.

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Roth IRAs are a big deal. HUGE deal in fact. They’re worth standing on your head for. The government has made it easier to convert to a Roth IRA now, so what are you waiting for?

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