» Estate Planning

Do You Own Rental Propert…

Do You Own Rental Property? How Proactive, Comprehensive Estate Planning Can Help

A comprehensive estate plan should address all of your assets. For most people, an estate plan must include three common categories: (1) your home; (2) financial accounts, like your checking and savings account; and (3) personal property. Other types… Read More
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Tax Reform and Your Estat…

Tax Reform and Your Estate Plan: What to Watch For

While Congress has not yet sent a tax bill to the President’s desk, both the House and Senate have passed their own versions of a sweeping tax reform bill that has implications for many estates. This article explores the changes to the federal… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning
Should a Trust Own Farm L…

Should a Trust Own Farm Land? Maybe not...

After establishing a trust, the next step is to properly fund your trust. Funding a trust is the process of transferring or directing assets to your trust. This can be done by re-titling assets in the name of your trust or, alternatively, naming your… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning, Farm

Treasury Department Backs off Proposed Discount Regulations

In 2016, the Department of Treasury proposed new regulations for Section 2704 of the Internal Revenue Code. The proposed regulations would have significantly minimized or eliminated discounts for family limited partnerships and other entities. Earlie… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning, Farm

Will your trust avoid probate? It depends

After setting up a revocable trust, it is important to remember that only the assets titled in the trust or that have the trust as the beneficiary will avoid probate and be administered directly under the trust. While we also prepare “pour-over… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning
How to Choose a Trustee

How to Choose a Trustee

How to Choose a Trustee When you establish a trust, you name someone to be the trustee. A trustee’s duties include collecting income of the trust, paying the trust’s bills and taxes, and investing the trust assets. The trustee is also res… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning

New Law Allows 529 Plan Tax Incentives for Minnesotans

Until recently, Minnesota was one of a few states that did not offer any tax incentives for 529 college savings plans. New legislation, passed as part of the 2017 omnibus tax bill, allows either a credit or a deduction for Minnesotans saving for coll… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning

New MN Estate Tax Relief Retroactive to January 1, 2017 - or is it?

After tumultuous regular and special sessions, the Minnesota Legislature sent a number of bills to Governor Dayton last week. On Tuesday, Governor Dayton announced he would allow H.F. 1, the omnibus tax bill, to become law by not vetoing it (he later… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning
PROBATE TRUTHS (and

PROBATE TRUTHS (and "Truthiness")

Comedian Stephen Colbert popularized the term “truthiness”, defined to mean “the quality of seeming or being felt to be true, even if not necessarily true”. For “probate”, truthiness abounds! Here are three myths, and three truths about t… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning
Financial Exploitation of…

Financial Exploitation of Elderly

Minnesota’s elderly population will double in the coming decades. A growing concern with the rising amount of elderly Minnesotans is protecting them from financial exploitation. Financial exploitation is the misuse or taking of assets from a vulner… Read More
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Categories: Estate Planning