You can count on your PlanLab® illustrations to provide the proper estate taxes with certainty, even as Congress continues their uncertainty! And when new laws are signed, PlanLab® will be among the first to provide updated illustrations.

Life insurance that has almost no market fluctuations is a very good long-term asset, especially if it is anticipated that it will be held until death.

Why create a will? It’s as simple as making distributions at death your way, or their way.

The people who need disability income insurance come in two forms: the ones whose lifestyle would be almost immediately affected if their source of monthly income suddenly stopped, and those who could endure the financial hardships caused by a sudden stop of salaried income. It is easy to help those in the first group see [...]

“Yes we can.” “The change we need.” “Too liberal.” “Spread the wealth.” “Lower taxes.” “Drill, baby, drill.” All of these were “sound bites” from the 2008 elections. People make very important decisions, decisions that should require cognitive research and careful deliberations, (like choosing a President) based on easily recalled “sound bites” such as these. Have [...]

Your 401(k) plan is your primary source of retirement savings. In the past year, particularly the past few months, it has dropped in value almost 50%. Everything you read or hear tells you to “sit tight.” Almost every source of financial advice recommends not cashing out, and not replacing your equity assets with fixed income [...]

Identifying a key person is only part of the problem: the tough problem is determining the dollar value that would be lost if the key person were lost. When an economic value can be placed on the lost of a key person, then insurance and other arrangements can be made to protect the business.

Many clients feel quite comfortable, and more importantly, trust the attorney they have used in the past—although it may have only been for real estate transactions, traffic violations, business related issues, or a simple will. There are many aspects of estate planning that only an attorney can perform. However, like almost all professionals, sometimes the skills of a specialist are required.

There are five areas of questions that the client should have answers to before selecting his or her estate planning attorney.

The economy has gone as sour as a lemon. Investments are severely depressed. Is there anything good about the current Wall Street melt-down? Anne Tergesen thinks there is, as she wrote in an article in the Wall Street Journal: “Yes, your finances are likely taking a beating this year. Which means it’s the perfect moment [...]

Creditors may consider an employee to be responsible for the profits that will enable a business to repay loans. If a key employee suddenly died or became disabled, would the business’s creditors hesitate to continue credit? How much cash would be needed to bridge the difficult time following the employee’s loss to reassure creditors? … to read the complete article, click on the article title