To have a successful farm, thoughtful planning must be done every season. Your life is no different. To properly prepare for the next season in your life and the lives of your loved ones, you need a well-executed estate plan.
Farming and ranching is more than just a livelihood; it is about preserving a legacy and a way of life. Unfortunately, many farmers and ranchers fail to create a comprehensive estate plan—or any estate plan at all. Without a proper estate plan, the family farm or ranch, passed down for generations, can end up being sold and converted to nonagricultural use, cutting the family’s legacy short and ending their unique lifestyle. Included are three common estate planning mistakes farmers and ranchers make and how to avoid them.
When everyone is alive and happy, it is easy to think that nothing will break a family apart. Many people think that since everyone gets along, estate planning is unnecessary because everyone will look out for one another and do only what is fair. However, having a properly prepared estate plan is crucial. Failing to plan not only takes all the control out of your hands but can also leave hurt feelings and possible confusion over your true wishes. This confusion may force family members to pursue the only source available to resolve the misunderstanding: probate court.
Many people believe that once they set up a revocable living trust and change the ownership of their accounts and property from themselves as individuals to their trust, those accounts
Rising housing costs, the desire for companionship, and the need to share resources are increasingly leading buyers to consider co-owning a home with someone other than a spouse, such as
You may be surprised to learn that, not only has asset protection planning been around for a long time, but you likely have already engaged in it at some point.
If the last time you and your spouse updated your estate plan was more than a decade ago, your estate plan may contain what is sometimes referred to as AB
A common misconception is that only wealthy individuals and people in high-risk professions, such as doctors or lawyers, need an asset protection plan. However, anyone can be sued. A car
Beware of Trust Scams—and How to Spot Them Trusts are widely used in estate planning to protect and transfer a person’s assets (money, accounts, property, etc.), sometimes in a tax-advantaged
If you recently married or have been married for a while and have acquired additional money or property (or plan to), you have options regarding how your assets can be