Assets, liabilities, and equity are accounting terms that every small business owner should be familiar with. They are included on a business’s balance sheet, providing a snapshot of financial health. A balance sheet shows a company’s assets and liabilities at a given time and how money is flowing in and out of the business. This information is useful to owners, …
Questions You Should Ask Your Estate Planning Attorney
Creating an estate plan is a personal and often emotional undertaking, making the selection of your estate planning attorney of the utmost importance. Here are some questions you should ask your estate planning attorney to determine if they are the right person for the job. Why did they pick estate planning as their practice area? At its core, estate planning …
Five Things to Know Before Including a Limited Liability Company in Your Estate Plan
When it comes to protecting your hard-earned money and property, it is important that you have the right plan, which can include a number of tools for your unique situation. One tool that might benefit you is a limited liability company (LLC) that owns some of your accounts and property. What is a limited liability company? An LLC is a …
Estate Planning Issues for the Modern Family
As the name suggests, ABC’s TV show Modern Family depicts the relationships and experiences between a fictional extended family. Throughout the course of the series, the show addresses many issues that families deal with each day. For a close-knit family such as this fictional one, estate planning is crucial to ensure that everyone is protected when one of them dies …
How to Put Business Interests into a Trust
When forming your business, you may choose to structure it as a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company (LLC), or corporation. Each type of structure offers different levels of asset protection and affects how much you pay in taxes. But owners can exert further control over their business—both while alive and after they pass away—by placing business interests in a …
Cari Rincker Trained as Collaborative Divorce and Family Law Attorney
I am happy to announce that I’m a trained collaborative divorce and family law attorney. I received my 16 hour training through the Institute for Family Conflict Resolution along with other professionals. I love that the collaborative divorce model is a way to support what is in the best interest of the children or family outside of court while using …
Ask Cari: What Is a Series LLC, and Can I Use One?
The series limited liability company (LLC) is a type of business structure that allows a group of subunits called series to be owned in a tiered structure. At the top level is the “parent” or “umbrella” LLC. Below this are one or more “series.” Not all states allow series LLCs. In states that permit them, the laws vary on how …
Four Important Considerations If You Win the Lottery
On February 14, 2023, California state lottery officials named the winner of the largest lottery prize in United States history: Edwin Castro won an eye-popping $2.04 billion in a November 2022 lottery drawing, choosing a lump sum payment of $997.6 million instead of annual payments over three decades.[1] A lottery player in Maine recently won the $1.35 billion Mega Millions …
Why Can’t We Have a Joint Trust If We Are Not Married?
Joint trusts are beneficial for many married couples, especially if they have a stable relationship, do not have many creditors, and do not live in a state where their estate may be subject to a state death tax. Compared to separate trusts, they are easier to fund, allow the surviving spouse to have complete control over the money and property …
The Sole Proprietorship: Pros and Cons
Transitioning from being an employee to being self-employed is a goal of many American workers, and a growing number of workers have realized their goal in the wake of pandemic-related economic disruptions. Individuals often cite taking control of their career as a top motivating factor for being self-employed. Self-employment frequently starts as a side hustle that blossoms into a full-time …
Planning a Barbecue Is Like Planning Your Estate
For many, Memorial Day weekend signals the beginning of summer and enjoying warm-weather activities, including backyard barbecues with friends and family. Although a cookout may be an informal affair, planning is crucial to its success. This is true for estate planning, too. Just as preparations are necessary for a successful cookout, a little planning goes a long way to prevent …
Home Security Systems and Estate Planning
Estate planning helps bring peace of mind and a sense of security, both in our lifetime and beyond. While we cannot predict our fate, we can at least dictate how our money and property will be distributed and ensure that we provide for our loved ones. Physical security is a big part of feeling emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually secure. More …