Common Myths About Wills And Estate Planning

From USA Today, 5 Myths About Wills And What You Should Do:

"60% of Americans don't have wills."

Myth 1: Estate planning is for rich people.
Fact 1: Your assets will be distributed under state "intestate succession"
laws, going to family members not as you would have wished.
You also need to include a durable power of attorney, and health care directive in your estate plan.

Myth 2: Without a will, everything will go to Spouse.
Fact 2: Depending on the state, without a will, most assets will go to spouse and children.

Myth 3: With a will, estate will not go to probate.
Fact 3: All wills go to probate. You can avoid probate with a living trust, a document that holds your property. But for most small estates, states have low cost express probate.
(Editor's note- You can also use a JTWROS document, TOD, or POD documents to bypass probate, each with advantages and disadvantages).

Myth 4: After making a will/trust, I am done.
Fact 4: You need to retitle assets in order to place assets into trust.
You need to update estate plans to reflect major life event changes-divorce, birth of child, or if moving to another state.

Myth 5: I am responsible for parents' debts.
Fact 5. The estate pays debts. If the estate runs out, the debts go unpaid. Debt collectors should contact the estate executor.
(Editor's note: If assets are distributed to heirs, then those heirs are liable to pay from those assets.

www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/basics/2009-10-22-making-a-will_N.htm

"Will the Estate Tax Disappear?"

Look for interesting updates about the impending fate of the Estate tax and current proposed legislation in the new blog: Future of the Federal Estate Tax
http://threepointfive-45.blogspot.com/

"On October 22, 2009, Laura Saunders of the Wall Street Journal published an article, "Will the Estate Tax Disappear?"
Notes:

• If the estate tax disappears in 2010, there would be a carryover basis instead of a step up in basis, and this change might hurt some people. (Editors note: Step up= assets subject to capital gains tax receive a new basis (buying price), which is what the assets are worth at death. Carryover= the original buying price stays after death.)
• A retroactive estate tax is constitutional.
• The article gives a good summary of the Baucus bill.
• It ends with an excellent quote from a practitioner: "I would advise anyone who wants to do a GRAT or Family Limited Partnership to do it soon, like yesterday." (Editor's note: They are advanced estate planning devices that are relevant to high net worth individuals).

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704224004574489581033118194.html

Municipal Bonds

From Municipalbonds.com, learn about
The 5 elements of a municipal bond trade:

Maturity, Interest Rate, $ Amount, Price, and Yield

http://www.municipalbonds.com/2009/01/20/the-5-components-of-a-municipal-bond-investment/