What can Estate Planning do for me?

First and foremost, Estate Planning is about peace of mind.  Proper planning will ensure that your loved ones, including elderly parents or young children, will be taken care of in accordance with your wishes.

Second, Estate Planning will help you avoid or minimize the costly process of probate and minimize the effects of the Federal estate tax and the Illinois death tax.  With the uncertain status of the Federal estate tax, planning for your estate now may be the difference between keeping nearly half of your assets or surrendering them to the IRS.  Lifetime gifts through utilization of the annual gift tax exclusion can also eliminate any gift tax liability you may have otherwise incurred.

Finally, Estate Planning can help protect your assets from creditors, future liability and the creditors of your spouse or children.  Asset protection is a primary concern for many people these days and, unfortunately, liability is not reserved for intentional or malicious acts.  Accidents happen, and proper planning now can help protect you and your family from unforeseen events in the future.

Additionally, consulting an Estate Planning specialist can help you organize your assets, determine ownership of certain assets and decide whether further planning is necessary.  Certain types of assets require re-titling because title was never properly changed from past generations or owners.  Other assets, such as real estate or a business, can often expose the owner to significant personal liability, which could be prevented with proper planning.  Many clients are unaware of what or how much property they own.  In such cases, proper Estate Planning can have significant benefits far beyond probate costs, estate tax and gift tax reduction.

Why should I choose you?

I pride myself on providing unique, personal consultations to each and every client so that their wishes will be carried out in the most timely and cost efficient manner possible.  I understand that planning for the future can be a difficult topic to think about, let alone discuss with others.  I do my best to ensure that each client is comfortable with the Estate Plan and understands the documents and how they work, which can often seem overwhelming.

As an Estate Planning specialist, I am on the cusp of the latest changes in Federal and State laws.  Unfortunately, I see many clients who have paid their hard-earned money for documents that are not customized for their particular needs and will not help achieve the goals of Estate Planning.  An Estate Plan must be specific to the needs of the clients and the State in which they reside in order to be effective.  My consultations and documents are specified to meet the unique needs of each and every client.

If you currently have Estate Planning documents and would like to have them reviewed, please contact me and I will be happy to review them for you.

If you currently do not have Estate Planning documents, contact me to arrange a meeting at a time and location of your convenience.

There is no charge for the initial meeting and consultation or for a review of your existing documents.