http://www.ameriestate.com/blog A Safe Harbor for Your Essential Estate Planning Needs Thu, 21 May 2009 17:16:06 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en AmeriEstate is pleased to announce that in keeping with long honored policies, all of its current legal plan members residing in Arizona, who are affected by the recent adoption of the Uniform Trust Code ("UTC"), governing all revocable and irrevocable trusts in Arizona, are being provided the necessary and important ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2009/05/08/arizona-trust-code-updates-provided-free/ The State of Arizona recently adopted most provisions of  the Uniform Trust Code (UTC) adding several new requirements to both new and existing Trusts.  The new law went into effect on January 1, 2009. Arizona’s legislature made this law retroactive to ALL trusts created before this change in the law.  This ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2009/04/27/arizona-trust-code-law-change-effective-jan-1-2009/ This is part of a letter written by famous comedian George Carlin, shortly after his wife died... Remember; spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever. Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2009/02/20/repeating-an-eloquent-sentiment/ Guidelines for Successor Trustees These Guidelines are designed as an aid to those of you who have been entrusted to serve as successor trustee(s).  It is not possible to answer all of your potential questions.  However, we hope to answer those which will come up with some regularity. You may have ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2008/11/21/managing-settling-a-trust-estate-upon-death-of-a-settlor/ These Guidelines are designed as an aid to those of you who have been entrusted to serve as successor trustee(s).  It is not possible to answer all of your potential questions.  However, we hope to answer those which will come up with some regularity. You may have assumed the duties as ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2008/11/21/managing-trust-assets-for-incapacitated-settlor/ It is not uncommon for supporters of living trusts as a means for distributing one's estate to compare the often high cost of probate to the cost of creating a Revocable Living Trust.  Depending on the state you live in and the complexities of your estate, Probate can consume anywhere ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2008/11/03/trustee-fees-vs-probate-costs/ NOTICE The following sections discuss certain Internal Revenue issues. PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS FOR REFERENCE FOR OUR CLIENTS AND IS INTENDED TO BE A STARTING POINT FOR YOU IN YOUR DISCUSSIONS WITH YOUR TAX ADVISOR. This is not intended to be a comprehensive discussion but merely seeks to answer some ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2008/10/21/tax-issues-for-revocable-living-trusts/ In a recent post we talked about the limits of insurance coverage available for bank deposits in the event your bank, thrift, savings and loan or credit union were to fail.  The government "rescue" or "Bail-out" plan passed in early October increased the insurance limits from $100,000 to $250,000. Our earlier ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2008/10/06/banking-crisis-of-sept-2008-triggers-new-fdic-rules/ With all the buzz over reverse mortgages (RM's) in the past couple years, I was surprised to learn that the first reverse mortgage was completed in Portland, Maine in 1961. The concept evolved until 1989 when RM's went mainstream with HUD selecting 50 lenders by lottery to make the first ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2008/09/08/reverse-mortgages-become-popular-option-for-seniors/ During the early summer of 2008, largely as a result of predatory lending practices and reckless borrowing by homeowners, the US Banking system is under significant pressure. The US Senate Banking Committee has identified 90 banks, S&L's or Thrifts as having marginal reserves to stay in business. One of the biggest US ... http://www.ameriestate.com/blog/2008/07/23/fdic-insurance-limits-for-living-trust-owned-bank-accounts/