Dear Garden State Trust: Recently, a friend of mine was suddenly taken ill. Her recovery is slow, so we are trying to do all that we can to help out. A court appointed a guardian to handle her finances because, we gather, she hadn’t made any formal arrangements. From our conversations, we knew that the…
Author: gstc
A Story for Veteran’s Day
Recently an associate recounted for us a family experience that we would like to share. My Dad was born in 1929, so he was too young to be drafted for World War II. His Uncle Ray, a farm boy, did serve. Ray was posted to Europe, but I don’t know how much fighting he did.…
Interest Rates
Dear Garden State Trust: How much higher do think interest rates will go? Inflation has already damaged my household budget this year, and higher interest rates on my debts will just make it worse. Isn’t there a chance these interest rate increases could trigger a recession or worse? —Wounded Already Dear Wounded: Interest rates will…
Celebrity Estate Takeaways
If you are alive to read this, then it isn’t too late to plan ahead and create an estate plan. In fact, it doesn’t need to be delayed until you are close to death—especially if substantial assets are involved. Thinking about death is hard. When it’s your own death, it’s even harder. However, thoughtful planning…
When a Spouse Inherits an IRA
Dear Garden State Trust: Before he died, my husband rolled his $1 million 401(k) account into an IRA, naming me as surviving beneficiary. Now he has died, and I’m not sure what to do next. —Newly Widowed Dear Newly: You need to consult with a tax attorney or an accountant about your inherited IRA. This…
Are You Ready For a Trust?
One of the best ways to incorporate all of this planning together would be the establishment of a revocable living trust or standby revocable trust. A funded living trust gets trustee services right away. Services such as investment management, or administrative tasks such as paying the bills each month. On the other hand, a standby…
Do You Need a Will If You Are a Solo Ager?
Yes, you do. When you die without a will or trust, the law defaults to a set of statutes that are collectively known as the laws of intestacy. In general, these laws direct how an estate will be divided among a decedent’s relatives. For the Solo Ager, those distributions may not be in accordance with…