The past week has lent itself to several CELEBRITY BABY BIRTHS, from Kim K. to Jessica Simpson; not to mention Kate Middleton, who is due any day now. Although we have had plenty of incoming news on baby-bumps and loss of judgment with regard to names (ex: “North West?”), there is an aspect of being a baby-momma that the news hasn’t quite touched on – planning ahead! We aren’t talking about a never ending supply of onesies with clever sayings, or baby-proofing your home. Rather, we are talking about ensuring that little Junior is provided for, in the event that you no longer can. We know, it’s a daunting subject when bringing life into the world – but nevertheless, very important.

When considering an appropriate name for your little newby (preferable one that won’t haunt little Jr. for the rest of his/her life), take a moment to  consider the following:

1. Estate plan – you want to have control over where your assets go upon your death. The moment you have a child, you want to be certain that you have an estate plan in place to ensure that he/she is provided for. In South Florida, if you do not have a will, the State of Florida will determine how your assets are distributed. Furthermore, you may want to put your assets into a living trust to avoid the costs and time associated with probate. This way, you can still use a pour-over will to distribute items into the trust, and have control over what beneficiaries will receive your assets, & how much they will be entitled to.
2. Pick a Guardian – In the event that anything happens to you, you want to ensure that someone you trust has guardianship over your child. You can always change the guardianship later on in life, especially if you want to make your own parents designated guardians for the time being. Keep in mind, the guardian does not necessarily have to take care of the child’s financial affairs, as you can designate someone else separately.
3. Life Insurance – if you haven’t applied for life insurance prior to being pregnant, you want to do so as early in pregnancy as possible, due to potential issues that can effect the insurance agency’s decision. However, keep in mind, some agencies may post-pone their decision until the third trimester to ensure there are no pregnancy-related issues. Also, there are many benefits associated with putting your life insurance into a trust. Younger families with modest assets will likely want to use a revocable trust, while larger estates may consider an irrevocable trust to exclude Life insurance proceeds from the gross estate (for purposes of estate taxes).
4. College planning – as soon as you get Junior’s social security number, it’s time to open a 529 college savings plan. This cannot be done soon enough, as the tax savings are substantial. You not only don’t have to pay tax on withdrawals, but any capital gains are tax-free as well. Einstein said that “the hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax,” & that is what makes this plan so simple = no federal income tax on money in the 529 college savings plan (plus, no income tax in Florida). Also, as an alternative, the Florida college savings plan is the largest prepaid plan in the nation.

For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection, contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at mwild@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?SM

Same sex couples can now receive the fabulous feature of portability – and we are not just talking about Louis-Vuitton luggage!

Today, the Supreme Court gave DOMA [“Defense of Marriage Act”] the boot, holding that it’s definition of marriage (limited to a union between one man & one woman) violates the guarantee of equal protection provided by the Fifth Amendment. Keep in mind, this only applies on a Federal level, and States can still refuse to recognize same-sex marriages. Here in South Florida, same-sex marriage is not recognized on a State level. However, when it comes to estate planning, DOMA’s demise has many beneficial effects for same-sex couples in South Florida; especially when dealing with Federal taxes.

Let’s talk about portability in relation to taxes. Generally, an intra-spousal transfer is not subject to transfer taxes due to the marital deduction, and there is portability of the exemption amount. This means that when “Wife” transfers assets to “Husband,” those assets are not subject to any Federal transfer tax (gift or estate tax). Furthermore, each individual receives an estate tax exemption of $5,250,000. Lets just think of it as $5,250,000 worth of cash in a bag (luggage, if you will). What if Husband doesn’t use his entire exemption amount, as his gross estate is much smaller? Well, that’s where portability comes into play. All the cash in Husband’s luggage (that he never used) is wheeled on over to Wife. She now has her own luggage full of cash, as well as Husband’s luggage full of cash; giving her a pretty substantial protection from estate taxes. This way, Husband’s estate tax exemption is not wasted, as it transfers to the Wife.

Previously, same-sex married couples didn’t receive the benefit of portability, because they failed to fall into the spousal status of Federal law. Now, following the Supreme Court’s holding in United States v. Windsor, same-sex married couples receive the marital deduction, and have portability of their exemptions.

While this is certainly a great estate planning feature for same-sex couples, you don’t want to always rely on portability. Rather, you should plan for it, as there is a Wild array of estate planning techniques that will ensure your receive all of the benefits of the law.

For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection, contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at mwild@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?SM

A gun trust, also known as a NFA Trust, is a legal tool designed to address specific issues concerning the ownership, transfer, and possession of firearms and other items regulated by the National Firearm Act (NFA).

You can lawfully purchase and own NFA firearms in Florida. You do have to register these weapons with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE or ATF), pay a $200 tax on each one, and obtain the consent of your Chief Law Enforcement Officer (CLEO).  However, if you create a proper Gun Trust, the trust owns the NFA items. A corporation or LLC can also be used to own weapons, but trusts do not require annual taxes or filing fees, thus limiting the hassle and expense of maintaining weapons.

Some benefits of creating a NFA Trust include:

• Being able to designate trustees who will be authorized to have access to and use your NFA items and firearms.  This eliminates the danger of constructive possession by appointing the people you want to be able to access your collection.
• No CLEO approval required
• When using an NFA Gun Trust to acquire NFA regulated items, neither fingerprints nor photographs are required.  Unlike when an individual directly purchases a firearm.
• Firearms do not become a part of the public record which is searchable by all
• No annual taxes to pay to maintain a corporation or LLC; only required to pay the $200 tax stamp

Additionally, once you pass away, the NFA Trust provides rules for legally handling the items. After your death, your estate and all your belongings will likely begin the process of probate (unless you have an estate plan in place). As many know, probate is an exhausting, daunting process that could take years. Probate proceedings will be necessary to transfer your NFA guns or items to your heirs and are a part of the public record, meaning people will know exactly what your children have by searching public records right on their home computers. With an NFA Trust, you can decide which beneficiaries will acquire all or part of your collection.

Your beneficiaries will be protected and your NFA firearms will not be subject to probate or made part of the public record. The NFA Trust can have specific provisions to protect beneficiaries, such as your children, from violating the NFA and ensuring they do not receive the NFA firearms if they live in a location where it is illegal to possess NFA firearms. The trust also allows the parent to specify when the child can receive the guns (must be at least eighteen years old by Florida law).

Be sure to arm your assets with a proper gun trust.  For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection, contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at mwild@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

        It’s a Wild world. Are you protected? SM

WHETHER you’re in South Florida or Timbuktu, you are already well aware that Miami Heat took their second straight NBA championship on Thursday night. LeBron James has been credited as the leader of this win, taking the title of Finals MVP. While LeBron has responded to his worshiping fans with statements of humility and gratefulness; his victory is not limited to his championships. Financial reports show that prior to Lebron’s arrival on the Heat, the franchise was valued at $425 million, and is now estimated to be $625 million.

While we can’t pull a LeBron & help you increase your profits by $200 million within a three year span; we can assist you with a triumphant victory in the estate planning department. The following five documents can help you increase control over your assets, and reduce the costs associated with probate.

1. Living Trust – a living trust has become increasingly desirable due to its ability to avoid probate (the legal process of determining whether a will is valid). If you are married, you may want to designate yourself and your spouse as co-trustees, so that you have full control over the property while you are still alive. Side Note: such control does have tax consequences, so you will want to discuss this with your estate planning attorney.
2. Assignment of Property – this is exactly that, assigning your property to your trust. In other words, placing your property into the trust. This includes both real & personal property. A trust does not do anything for you if there is no property in it.
3. Last Will & Testament – this is your traditional will that is used upon death to distribute property to beneficiaries, specify last wishes, and name guardians for minor children.
4. Durable Power of Attorney – this allows you to designate and authorize someone to legally act on your behalf, in the event that you become incapacitated.
5. Combination Living Will & Designation of Healthcare Surrogate – this outlines important healthcare decisions in advance, and appoints a healthcare surrogate to make healthcare decisions for you when you become unable to do so yourself.

When it comes to your estate, ask yourself, “What Would LeBron Do?” Clearly, he’d maximize winnings & profit! Whether you’re in South Florida or Timbuktu, protecting your assets & decreasing your costs is both a winning and profit maximization.

For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at mwild@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

        It’s a Wild world. Are you protected? SM

Poor Miss Utah, Marissa Powell, is facing nothing but critics regarding her answer to the income inequality question posed on Sunday night’s Miss USA pageant. Miss Powell’s beauty failed to meet brains; rather, it met her social demise, as demonstrated by the answer to the following question:

“A recent report shows that in 40 percent of American families with children, women are the primary earners yet they continue to earn less than men. What does this say about society?”  Her answer of “we need to figure out how to make education better,” marked a painful downward spiral.

If there is a moral to this story, it is to plan ahead. Although Miss Utah’s question wasn’t exactly a curveball; life can catch us off guard with the difficult of situations. Prepare for life’s unexpected challenges in South Florida with an estate plan that answers some of the following questions (don’t worry, nothing on income inequality).

If you died today, or became incapacitated, would you have the following benefits?

• asset protection
• control over your assets
• protection for your loved ones
• preclusion of unnecessary taxes
• creditor protection
• limited/no transfer taxes for following generations

If the answer to any of these is “no,” you should consider seeking an estate planning attorney to assist you in planning ahead for any of life’s Wild, & unexpected challenges. This may include, but is not limited to the following documents:

1.  Living Trust – gain control, asset protection, & preclusion of unnecessary taxes by designating a trustworthy Trustee.
2. Assignment of Property – place all of your property into the trust, and avoid costs & headache associated with probate.
3. Last Will & Testament – used to distribute property to beneficiaries (or a trust), specify last wishes, and name guardians for minor children.
4. Durable Power of Attorney – gain control by designating someone to legally act on your behalf in the event that you become incapacitated.
5. Combination Living Will & Designation of Healthcare Surrogate – gain control by making important healthcare decisions in advance.

For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at mwild@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.

 It’s a Wild world. Are you protected? SM