In Trusts We Trust: Everything You Need to Know to Get Started

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If you’re unsure of what a trust is and how it works, you probably don’t have one. And, if you don’t have a trust, you’re not alone. About 57 percent of U.S. adults don’t have an estate planning document like a will or a trust even…
letter of instruction

How a Letter of Instruction Works with your Estate Plan

When I prepare estate plans for my clients, they typically include six key documents. For more complex estates, the plan may also involve trust and/or business succession documents. However, to make estate planning as simple and the least chaotic…
planned gift pink bow

Purposeful Planned Giving: What it is & How to Make a Powerful Difference

A planned gift is literally what is sounds like. Sort of. The term refers to the process of creating a charitable bequest now that will take effect later. In other words, during your lifetime you plan for a gift that will be given a future date—usually…
july newsletter tablet by pool

Dive In to the July Edition of my Newsletter: GoFisch

The July edition of my GoFisch monthly newsletter went out today. Not a subscriber yet? Give it a glance here! This month featured: Why you'll be glad you added certain estate planning musts to your summer vacation checklist and marked…
cash and checkbook

How Much Does an Estate Plan Cost in Iowa? Rates Should be Transparent!

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When estate planning you're answering many of the unknowns for the future by deciding to whom you want your stuff—your cash assets, real estate, personal property, physical body, to name just a few—to pass to and when. You also have to…
coffee-book-table-word-nerd

Calling all Word Nerds: 9 Terms to Know About Trusts

In the past I've written about specific "legal words of the day" where we take a deep dive into terms that can be confusing, misleading, or unknown. A few of the favorites? Breach of contract, subpoena, and inclusion rider. But, if you’re…