Financial Planning

Man Tries to Kill Senior Girlfriend in Nursing Home for Financial Reasons

Published on: September 25, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

It is perhaps every senior’s worst nightmare: a dispute over their finances influences the care they receive in their later years. It seems self-evident that nothing should get in the way of making medical and caregiving decisions based on maximizing a senior’s quality of life–not maximizing an inheritance for others once a senior passes on. Unfortunately, case after case demonstrates that some elderly community members suffer in their later years unnecessarily for financial reasons–not because they cannot afford proper care but because other want their money.

This confluence of elder law and estate planning was perhaps most vividly illustrated by a case discussed this week in SF Gate.

According to the story, a 63-year old woman was staying at a local care center because she was not able to care for herself at home. The details of her family situation are not known, however, she had been dating a 67-year old man for the past three years. Unfortunately, the boyfriend appears to have been motivated in the relationship mostly by the way that it could benefit him financially.

Death & Student Loan Obligations

Published on: September 24, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Not many years ago student loans and estate planning were rarely discussed in the same sentence. That is because in decades past far fewer individuals took out student loans and, even when they did, the size of the loans were smaller. Things are changing, however. Higher education is becoming more and more crucial to long-term employment and the cost of that education is increasing. These changes mean that more individuals have to take student loan obligations into account when conducting long-term financial planning. Those loans may the planner’s own loans or (even more likely) loans for children on which they co-signed.

In any event, more and more families have to take these issues into account in long-term planning. One issue on which there is much confusion is the discharge (or lack of discharge) of these obligations upon death.

Student Loan Obligations & Death

Can Doctors Protect Retirees from Fraud?

Published on: September 11, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

As more and more information emerges about the true scope of senior financial exploitation, senior care advocates are leaving no stone unturned when it comes to tackling the problem. The latest statistics from MetLife suggest that, amazingly, one out of every five seniors over 65 years old have already be victimized financially in some way. At a general level it seems that prevention can take three forms: better educate seniors to stop it, better educate interested third parties to identify problems, and improve law enforcement efforts to catch wrongdoers.

Ensuring seniors are able to spot scams themselves seems like an obvious way to cut the problem significantly. However, that comes with many challenges, because the entire issue is rooted in seniors inherent vulnerability. Those with early stages of Alzheimer’s and other dementias are often the most at risk of being taken advantage of. For that reason, many suspect that intervention of third parties, like elder law attorneys and financial professionals, is crucial.

New Advocate to Prevent New York Elder Fraud

Losing Home Over $400 Tax Bill

Published on: July 11, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Senior care advocates repeatedly remind families that oversight is needed in some cases to ensure seniors do not fall victim to financial exploitation. Having an elder law estate planning attorney involved in the process is one way to provide some professional oversight.

However, beyond protecting against scammers and hucksters, many seniors are facing a new financial crisis that is not rooted in illegal misconduct. When on a fixed income and struggling with confusing money issues, some seniors might face incredibly severe financial penalties for falling behind on certain bills or taxes.

For example, CNN Money reported this week on a growing number of individuals who are losing their homes because they owe relatively small sums. A report from the National Consumer Law Center detailed how some states have outdated laws that allow states to sell tax liens on delinquent properties. Essentially this means that instead of the government having a lien on a piece of property that owed back taxes or bills for services like water and gas, private investors own the lien. The investor then collects interests on the overdue bill or, in some cases, forecloses on the home. Some states allow investors to charge staggeringly high interest rates, from 15% to 50%.

Should You Take Advantage of Tax Situation Now?

Published on: June 25, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The New York Times published a story this weekend on the continued uncertainty regarding the gift and estate tax and the questions it raises for many families. As each New York estate planning lawyer at our firm explains to local residents, the current tax situation is in flux, requiring many different considerations when engaging in estate planning. As it now stands, residents can each give up to $5.12 million tax free and then pay a 35% tax rate on any gift above that amount. The tax-free amount will drop and tax rate rise at the end of the year without Congressional action.

The uncertainty about the future of the tax details present very obvious challenges to many families. Giving away money to heirs now means reducing an eventual tax bill down the road. However, there are many questions about whether couples will have enough money to live on themselves after giving large sums to others. Obviously these considerations all depend on the value of the family estate. In general, only comparatively wealthy families are impacted by these issues. But for those families who are “on the cusp” and stand to pay more in taxes when the changes take effect, tough decisions will need to be made in the next six months.

One consideration beyond basic tax savings for estate planning purposes is the amount the any money passed on might grow over the years. For example, if a couple gave their child $5 million to take advantage of the favorable exemption, the gift could grow to nearly $30 million in about 30 years based on reasonable return rates.

New York State Push To Increasing Staff Hours At Nursing Homes

Published on: April 11, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

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New York does not have a very commendable track record when it comes to nursing home quality. AARP rankings last year placed our state near the very bottom in a range of quality measurements for long-term care facilities. Our New York elder law attorneys appreciate that it is the dismal reputation of life at so many long-term care homes that spur residents to explore all other options to meet their senior care needs.

Almost everyone wants to live in their own home as long as possible. If they cannot, the next best choice is usually some form of assisted living arrangement that provides the maximum privacy and autonomy. It is only when that cannot be obtained–for either financial, medical, or logistical reasons–that many families turn to traditional nursing homes. Unfortunately, because of the poor care provided at so many of these locations, the seniors forced to live in the homes often admit to decreases in their overall well-being and quality of life. In the worst cases these residents fall victim to nursing home abuse and neglect.

Estate Planning Challenges For the “Asset Rich and Cash Poor”

Published on: March 29, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

This week the USA Today shared a helpful story that analyzed some estate planning difficulties faced by certain families, often farmers, who have many physical assets but few liquid cash stockpiles. One obvious challenge for these families is dealing with the uncertainty of the estate tax. Estate tax considerations are of clear concern, because the family may be unable to pay the tax burden that comes with inheriting the assets without being forced to actually sell those very assets.

Currently, there is a $5 million exemption level for the estate tax. However, without federal action, that exemption level will drop to $1 million by the end of the year. All inherited assets that exceed that level will then be taxed at various rates up to 55%, with a 5% surcharge on estates over $10 million.

Our New York estate planning attorneys appreciate that these estate tax issues are of paramount importance to certain community members, like farm families or those with family-owned businesses. For example, it does not take much for farms of various sizes to cross over that $1 million threshold when taking into account land, buildings, and equipment. In addition, for many farmers, land values have risen steadily with advances in natural resource technology because of the increased profitability of available minerals. Many resources can now be extracted from land that was previously unattractive to the mineral industry. This increases the value of land but makes estate tax considerations a real concern for more families.

Money for Senior Care Services Fails to Keep Pace with Rising Need

Published on: March 28, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Surveys from the AARP suggest that more than ninety percent of seniors would prefer to stay in their own homes as they age instead of moving into a nursing home or assisted living facility. Our New York elder law estate planning attorneys work with many seniors who take preparations specifically to avoid being forced to move in the future.

Unfortunately, access to the support services that allow seniors to stay at home is getting harder and harder to come by. Transportation services, meal delivery programs, adult day care centers, and similar programs are finding it tougher to stretch stagnant resources to aid a growing number of seniors. The Times Herald-Record touched on these New York elder care concerns in a story this week.

For example, at the end of this month the Dial-A-Bus service will no longer be providing support to elderly community members in New Windsor, Cornwall, and many nearby towns. Senior care workers explain that it is hard to underestimate the value of those sorts of services. For some isolated seniors, the bus service was not simply the only way they had to get to doctors appointments, but it was often the only chance these seniors had to socialize and interact with those in the community.

Tax Season Reminder to Plan Ahead to Cut Bill to Uncle Sam

Published on: March 27, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

For many the end of March represents the beginning of spring, warming weather, and the looming approach of baseball season. For others, this time of the year is consumed with the dread of having to deal with a fast-approaching tax deadline. There is usually little to look forward to in tax season other than completing piles of paperwork and learning how much was lost in the last year to Uncle Sam. However, our New York estate planning attorneys suggest that the trudge through tax season can be turned into a positive and used as motivation to come up with long-term strategies to lower tax burdens for the future.

Death and taxes are inevitable. But the process of aging and the stress of tax-paying can vary tremendously depending on how well one plans ahead. Helping with these issues is what our New York City elder law estate planning lawyers do each day. Much can be gained by putting affairs in order and crafting long-term tax saving strategies. Tax season is the perfect time to finally take the plunge.

A recent article from USA Today Money explores the ways that planning ahead can (and can’t) help local residents save down the road. On one hand, it is undeniable that that short-term tax picture is hard to predict, because so much hinges on federal legislative conduct in the next year. Barring action, various tax rates are set to rise at the end of the year (expiration of the so-called “Bush tax cuts”). Top income tax rates, capital gains, dividends, and estate taxes may all rise. In addition, the “marriage penalty” will return along with an increase in payroll taxes.

Increase in Blended Families Cited For Causing “Uglier” Estate Fights

Published on: March 19, 2012 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The world is a different place today than it was in 1950. Several decades ago the vast majority of families were of similar make-up: father, mother, kids, dog, house, and car. Inheritance planning in those situations often followed very predictable patterns. A spouse received the assets after a death, and the children split the remaining assets when the second parent moved on. However, our New York estate planning lawyers know that there is much more complexity these days.

That is true for several reasons. On one hand, the law has changed, with different tax situations, legal tools, long-term care concerns and other realities forcing estate plans to take more into account. In addition, families are much more diverse these days than in the past.

Blended families are quite common, necessitating families take special care to account for their inheritance wishes. “Default” statutory inheritance rules may have been a bit less off-putting several decades ago. However, considering the unique make-up of most families these days, it is incumbent upon local residents not to risk their estate being split via default intestacy rules. As a new USA Today story explains, it is no longer a luxury to have the help of an estate planning lawyer–it is a necessity.