“I’ve come to pay my respects.” We typically hear this at funerals and cemeteries. But what does this mean? “Respect” comes from the Latin word “respectus” which means “to look back at” or “regard”. When it comes to a person’s life and he or she is here no more, to respect them is to remember [..]
As I write this, Minnesota is about to enter its coldest days in over 20 years. Thirty below temperatures with wind chills up to 65 below. This would be a great time to try that vaporizing trick where a pot of boiled water is tossed up in the air and before a drop reaches the [..]
We have all heard of Powers of Attorneys. But are we really aware of what they are, what they do and even how many of them exist? We have Power of Attorneys for finances and Power of Attorneys for healthcare issues. Does it matter if I have a “Short Form Power of Attorney” instead of [..]
On May 22, 2016 the Governor signed into law the following provisions (which take effect August 1, 2016) which will put more money into the pocket of heirs: For 2nd marriage spouses, this will interest you. In cases where there is no Will or estate plan, you can now take $225,000 off the top of [..]
If you have ever consulted with your financial advisor or estate planning attorney you have probably heard the phrase “Will Package”. A Will Package typically refers to a Will, Healthcare Directive and a Power of Attorney offered at a discount if purchased at one time. Some attorneys have recently added a fourth document to the “package” called a [..]
In Minnesota, we love our boats. With 15,000 lakes to choose from it’s no wonder that in 2014 Minnesota ranked # 2 in boat registrations in the country (and no, Alaska isn’t 1st—it’s actually Florida). Minnesota has 809,000 boats registered! The boats come in all forms—ski boats, power boats, cabin cruisers, yachts, sailboats, pontoons and, [..]
In 2011, Huguette Clark, wife of the late Senator Andrew Williams Clark, a copper magnate, died at the amazing age of 104. Huguette had three apartments on New York’s Fifth Avenue, a mansion in Connecticut and a home in California. And for the last 20 years of her life she lived in none of them. [..]
As most of us know Princess Di died in a car crash in 1997. The world was stunned that someone of such youth and high profile would die in such a common fashion (in 2013 there were over 32,700 deaths in the U.S in and 1,713 deaths in the U.K.). This should serve as a [..]
It wasn’t too long ago that one could easily say the largest asset in one’s estate was their home. However, with the significant downturn in the markets seven years ago many lost significant equity in their home to the point of even seeing their home go ‘upside down’, a phrase used to indicate owing more [..]