“We are programmed to contribute the “max” to our retirement accounts and we disregard, or do not understand, the pitfalls of an improperly filled-out beneficiary forms.” Ignore beneficiary forms at your and your heirs’ own peril, especially when there are minor children involved, is the message from TAPintoChatham.com’s recent article “Are You Read to Deal […]

“As we approach our 70s, we feel like we have everything covered. We don’t have long-term care insurance, but with the income we have off the farm and with our savings, we feel pretty comfortable. Is0’ everything we have enough?” A family has set up their estate plan. Two sons are already in the farming […]

“You probably anticipate living on a fixed income in retirement. However, you may not expect how much your spending will fluctuate. Many individuals tend to shell out more money at the outset of retirement, due to lifestyle adjustments or travel.” Starting retirement with a bang can make a big dent in your nest egg no […]

“Contemplation of retirement can be both exciting and intimidating. Obviously, planning for the beginning of retirement should start early.” While you may be thinking about retirement for a long time, with visions of tropical beaches or grand trips overseas, when the date starts to get closer, it’s time for some real analysis and planning, says […]

“While it’s not something many people think about until faced with the issue, obtaining a credit report for a deceased person is important. You may need to make sure the credit report is accurate and take stock of any creditors you need to notify of the death or see if there’s any unresolved debt that […]

“During retirement or before, you probably did all the financial planning along with the legal paperwork. Have you also thought about personal choices as you age and the options ahead?”   If you don’t have a personal plan for yourself, you may wish you had given it some thought when and if you come to […]

“For couples over 50, living together has a lot of appeal and is on the rise. In fact, the number of unmarried couples who are 50+ shot up 75% between 2007 and 2016, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.” One reason for the popularity of living together without marriage is that many in this generation […]

“Talking about illness, death and taxes is not most people’s idea of a good time (except for us estate planners). That being said, there are times in life when it’s time to move updating your estate plan off the ‘to do’ list and on to the ‘done’ list. Here are those times:” Every estate planning […]

“Your will may be the most important document you’ll ever write. The problem is, after many of us draft one, we put it somewhere for safekeeping and don’t look at it again. That can be a big mistake.” Lives change, and laws change. People come and go in our lives, through birth, death, marriage and […]

“A No Contest clause is a paragraph that can be included in a Last Will and Testament or a Trust, which makes it clear that anyone who challenges the validity of the document or the way it distributes or manages the assets of the estate will receive less than what the document would have otherwise […]