W. Bailey Smith, A Certified Estate Planning Attorney

WHAT IS PROBATE? Probate is required if a person has no Will. Probate is also required even if a person has a Will. Probate is required unless a person takes steps to avoid probate. Probate is “proving the will” through a court...

Joint Tenancy Is a Death Tax Trap & an Income Tax Disaster

29 Mar 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Most people hold title to their investments in joint tenancy, but this is often not the best way to hold title. To determine how you hold title to your investments look at your title documentation. If you hold title in joint tenancy...

Be Careful Trustees!

13 Feb 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog, Trust

A person can make poor investments and lose their own money without liability. But if you’re a trustee of someone else’s money, you can be liable if you make poor investments. This is true even if all you do is retain the...

Don’t Need Your Current Life Insurance?

06 Feb 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog, Insurance, Investment

If you have a life insurance policy that you no longer want, consider selling it rather than simply surrendering it to the insurance company. Sales like these are so common that they even have a name – life settlements. You could possibly...

Incapacity

30 Jan 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Modern medicine is keeping our bodies alive longer, but it isn’t necessarily keeping our minds alert for longer. As a result, more and more people are becoming mentally incapacitated before they pass away. There are many dishonest people who will take advantage...

Spotlight On My Family

23 Jan 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Kimmie is a graduate of UC Davis in Communications. She is bilingual in Spanish having studied at the University of Salamanca in Spain. She has now gone back to school to get a second degree in Speech Therapy. Her husband, Jon, is...

Estate Planning – The John Wayne Problem and the Bing Crosby Solution

23 Jan 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog, Trust

How to properly plan your estate today. Why was John Wayne not a good example of proper estate planning? On the other hand, why was Bing Crosby an example of how to plan your estate properly. Learn what a Trust is and...

Penny Wise, Pound Foolish

17 Jan 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog, Investment, Trust

I had a client who didn’t want to pay us to transfer her 5 parcels of real estate to her trust. She said her son was “in real estate” and would do the transfers for her. A few years later, the client...

Life Insurance Review

09 Jan 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog, Insurance

We’ve noticed many of our clients are still paying life insurance premiums when they no longer need to. Others are no longer paying premiums but they don’t realize that they can exchange their existing policy for a new one that has a...

Property Tax Exemptions

04 Jan 2018

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Some transfers of California real estate between parents and children are exempt from reassessment. That means that your children might get to keep your low Proposition 13 taxes! Your children may exempt from reassessment (1) your primary residence and (2) $1,000,000 of...

Does Mom Need Help?

27 Dec 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

“Your mother’s doctor called to tell you in a few days she can return home but she’ll need someone to help her at home with cooking, cleaning, and bathing.” or “Mom seems okay but papers are piling up, bills aren’t getting paid,...

Four Necessary Legal Documents Every 18-Year-Old Should Have

20 Dec 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

When your child turns 18, it’s the year they are able to vote for the first time; it’s the year that they graduate from high school; and it’s the year your child becomes an adult in the eyes of the law. Many...

The 10 Biggest Mistakes in Estate Planning

12 Oct 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

I fix trusts; don’t make these mistakes. To learn more, call us at (949) 833-8891 for a free consultation in either our Irvine or Long Beach office.

Four Great Books on Aging and Elder Care

19 Sep 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Longevity is generally better than its alternative. But when the body or especially the mind wears out, caring for yourself or finding someone else to do it for you can impoverish you in short order. These books are all in their own...

Aging Parents with Lots of Stuff, and Children Who Don’t Want It

12 Sep 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Mothers and daughters talk about all kinds of things. But there is one conversation many daughters are reluctant to have with their mothers. What to do- eventually- with mother’s beloved set of Lenox china, silver, and antiques? The only heirlooms Susan wants...

Living Trust or Living Nightmare?

08 Sep 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Outdated documents can be worse than no estate plan at all. We have reviewed thousands of trusts in California and have found that many of these old estate plans can put your estate in serious jeopardy. Call our office to update your...

Protect Your Children’s Inheritance

31 Aug 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

How are you leaving assets to your children? Are you leaving your assets to your children unprotected when you die, or are you leaving the assets protected in an ongoing trust? The typical revocable living trust allows your children to avoid probate...

How to Get Started

30 Aug 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Contact us for a free consultation to discuss your estate plan at (949) 833-8891. We will send you a questionnaire for you to complete and have available at the consultation. (Or click here to Download the Questionnaire.) You and your spouse must...

Will You Become the Next Terri Schiavo

30 Aug 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

The American Medical Association tells us that 78% of the patients at the emergency rooms today don’t have a current HIPAA release form or an advanced health care directive. If you have a medical emergency, it is important to have an advanced...

Was Your Will Written in the Statehouse? The “Intestate Statute”…

03 Aug 2017

W. Bailey Smith

Blog

Was your will written by Jerry Brown? Everyone has a will but not everyone has written a personal will. If you have been a procrastinator and never written a will, no problem because Jerry Brown has written the will you failed to...

Blog

What Is Probate & How To Avoid It

Joint Tenancy Is a Death Tax Trap & an Income Tax Disaster

Be Careful Trustees!

Don’t Need Your Current Life Insurance?

Incapacity

Spotlight On My Family

Estate Planning – The John Wayne Problem and the Bing Crosby Solution

Penny Wise, Pound Foolish

Life Insurance Review

Property Tax Exemptions

Does Mom Need Help?

Four Necessary Legal Documents Every 18-Year-Old Should Have

The 10 Biggest Mistakes in Estate Planning

Four Great Books on Aging and Elder Care

Aging Parents with Lots of Stuff, and Children Who Don’t Want It

Living Trust or Living Nightmare?

Protect Your Children’s Inheritance

How to Get Started

Will You Become the Next Terri Schiavo

Was Your Will Written in the Statehouse? The “Intestate Statute”…

ASK A QUESTION

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