A: Register your business with the state: This legitimizes your business for both you and your consumers, gives you the ability to apply for grants and loans, and allows you to receive an employer identification number (EIN), which means you can establish business...
A: No. Here's why: If something happens to you, your life insurance proceeds won't pay out until they are 18 years old. This is not why you got life insurance and not what you want! The solution? Name your living trust as the beneficiary on your life policy instead! A...
A: A small estate affidavit is a legal document that a person can use to collect an asset after the death of a loved one if certain conditions are met. If a decedent’s total assets are valued at less than $166,250 and at least 40 days have passed since the date of...
A: Not necessarily! Your spouse may only receive one-half or one-third of your estate when you die if you do not have a will or trust in place that specifies how the assets of your estate will be distributed. Under California law, the proportion of your separate...
A: Federal estate taxes are currently levied on all estates that exceed $11.7 million in value. Additionally, each state also has the right to charge its own estate tax at the state level. Fortunately, the State of California does not have an estate tax separate from...
A: Whether or not your children will have to pay inheritance taxes will depend upon which state they reside in at the time of your demise! For example, if both your children live in California, they will NOT have to pay any inheritance taxes. However, if one of your...
A: Unfortunately, ALL of your personal assets will be on the hook for your mistakes as a business owner while operating as a sole proprietorship. Your only line of defense will be your insurance coverage, assuming you have it. On the other hand, if you had...
A: Yes, there are quite a few! Let’s assume you added your son as a 50/50 owner to your home: First, your son will only be able to receive a stepped-up tax basis on one-half of the property rather than a 100% stepped-up basis. Depending upon how long the property...
A: We're delivering a chilling #WednesdayWisdom this week! 👻 The most ghoulish part about doing a will or a trust with LegalZoom is that you have no way of knowing whether or not it is done correctly until it’s too late to fix it! We think that your family, assets...
A: The term “estate planning” refers to the process of anticipating and arranging for the management, disposal and transfer of one’s estate both in the event of a person’s incapacity and also after the person’s death. If you have any questions about this, please feel...
