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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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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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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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3 Ways to Manage Your Estate Plan Cost
October 2nd, 2024
You may think creating a simple estate plan should be easy and something you can do independently. Unfortunately, this is not often the case. Estate planning laws vary greatly from state to state, can sometimes be complicated, and constantly change.…
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Three More Famous Pet Trust Cases and the Lessons We Can Learn from Them
September 25th, 2024
Sometimes, pet owners can get a bit creative when providing for their pets’ future care. The following three famous cases involving a sort of a pet trust offer some important lessons. Although some of the cases shared here involve leaving an inheri…
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A Trust for Fluffy or Fido? Why Every Pet Parent Needs to Consider a Pet Trust Today
September 11th, 2024
Estate planning is about protecting what is important to you. Although much of the traditional estate planning conversation focuses on surviving spouses, children, grandchildren, and charities, many pet parents wonder what could happen to their “fu…
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5 Tragic Mistakes People Make When Leaving an Inheritance to Their Pets
September 4th, 2024
Planning for your pets in your estate plan is an excellent way to ensure that your beloved pet will receive proper care and attention after you pass on. The problem, of course, is that you will not be there to ensure that your wishes are carried out.…
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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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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