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Caution: Using a DIY Deed to Create Joint Owners and Avoid Probate Can Lead to Unintended Consequences
December 11th, 2024
One common way to avoid the probate requirement for real estate after the owner dies is to add children or other individuals to the property title as joint owners with rights of survivorship. When joint owners have survivorship rights and one joint o…
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Shannen Doherty Understood That With Divorce, Timing Is Everything in Estate Planning
December 4th, 2024
According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey, there were more than 670,000 divorces[1] and more than 2 million marriages in 2022. Divorce is a common life event that many Americans face during their lifetime. But the effect of div…
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What to Do with Grandma’s Ring: Dividing Personal Property in an Estate
November 27th, 2024
If you have a beloved late grandmother, many images and memories may come to mind when you reminisce about her.You might picture her at her home or at the family vacation house during the holidays. Your memory could be a special meal that only she pr…
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Choosing a Fiduciary: How to Pick a Trustee, Executor, and Agent under a Power of Attorney
November 6th, 2024
While the term fiduciary is a legal term with a rich history, it generally means someone who is legally obligated to act in another person’s best interest. Trustees, executors, and agents are examples of fiduciaries. When you are choosing a fiducia…
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Categories: Estate Planning, Health Care Surrogates, Powers of Attorney, Probate, Property, Trusts, Wills
Can Someone Else Pay for My Estate Plan?
October 23rd, 2024
Estate planning is not just for the wealthy. Every adult should have an estate plan, yet surprisingly, most Americans do not. The perceived cost of creating one is among the most cited reasons for a lack of estate planning. The consequences of not ha…
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The Perils of Joint Ownership of Property
October 16th, 2024
People often set up bank accounts or real estate so that they own them jointly with a spouse or other family member. The appeal of joint ownership, specifically with survivorship rights, is that when one owner dies, the other owner(s) will automatica…
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Won’t My Spouse and Kids Inherit Everything When I Die?
October 9th, 2024
You may think that if you die while you are married, everything you own will automatically go to your spouse and children. But you are actually thinking of state rules that apply if someone dies without leaving a will. In legal jargon, this is referr…
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What Conditions Can I Put on My Child’s Inheritance?
August 28th, 2024
You have two primary options for leaving an inheritance to a child. The most straightforward is to give it to them in a single lump sum, with no strings attached. But this might not be the best option for some children. You may be concerned about the…
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Are You Ready to Move Away from Home?
July 17th, 2024
When you move away from home, it is a major milestone in adulthood. For the first time, you might have to secure housing, buy insurance, sign up for utilities, and manage your finances. All of this can feel overwhelming as you simultaneously adapt to…
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What Happens to An Adult Child Living at Home When Their Parents Pass Away?
June 5th, 2024
Today more young adult children are living at home with their parents than at any time since the 1940s. While there are many different opinions about this trend and the cause of its recent prevalence, the primary motivation for young adults staying a…
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Attorney Jana McCreary
Houston Estate Planning Attorney Jana R. McCreary has been an attorney for over twenty years, a career move she made after working for over a decade with adults and children with intellectual disabilities and mental illness. Graduating summa cum laud… Read More