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Choosing a firm to guide and advise you in estate planning is one of the most important tasks you will do for yourself and your family. Experience and trust are just some of the factors to consider when choosing an estate planning attorney. At the Greening Law Firm, P.C. we stand ready to help you with all aspects of estate planning and administration including trusts, wills, probate, business succession, family limited partnerships, asset protection, elder law, Medicaid planning, and pet trusts.
Contact our Austin area elder law attorneys to set up a complimentary initial estate planning consultation.
Together we can plan for a secure tomorrow.
View our Austin area Estate and Medicaid Planning workshops and events.
The Greening Law Firm offers Estate Planning, Probate, & Medicaid Planning
to the following Central Texas locations:
Austin, Georgetown, Bee Caves, Lakeway, Lake Travis, Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Temple, Hutto, Leander, Manor, Dripping Springs, Blanco, Wimberly, San Marcos, Bastrop, Elgin, Westlake and Central Texas.
More information on our Austin Estate Planning services.
Estate Planning
Earning money and spending it are two great pleasures of life. Deciding who gets it when you are gone is a task most people would rather ignore.
In fact, only 30% of American adults have taken the time to plan their estates. Unfortunately, many of those who have are led to believe that a simple will is all they need.
Estate planning is made up of four areas: accumulating assets (earnings) and preserving assets (from predators), managing assets upon a disability, and distributing assets when you die. Although it may sound simple, there are challenges that may prevent your estate from being managed and distributed according to your wishes. These challenges can be broken down into three categories: probate, death taxes, and guardianship. Learn more about estate planning.
Probate
Probate is a legal procedure in which the probate court assumes jurisdiction over the assets of someone who has died. The court can supervise the payment of debts, taxes, and probate fees, then supervise the distribution of the remainder to the persons named in a will or to the heirs if there is no will. Learn more about our Austin probate lawyer service to learn more about probate.
Medicaid Planning
Upon qualification, Medicaid will pay for long-term care in a nursing home and Medicaid-approved, necessary prescription medications. Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of nursing home residents enter a facility on a private basis and only later turn to the Medicaid program for coverage. In this way, many spend themselves into abject poverty even though, through appropriate planning, they could have qualified for Medicaid sooner and preserved their assets for themselves and their families. Learn more about Austin Medicaid planning.
Estate Administration
If a decedent had a properly drafted and funded trust, probate is generally not required. The successor trustee nonetheless must take steps to administer the trust. Beneficiaries must be contacted and kept informed; the trust-maker's assets gathered and invested; any debts paid; potential creditors notified; taxes filed and paid assets and/or income distributed in conformity with trust provisions to beneficiaries, etc.
Successor trustees often lack the time, resources or knowledge to personally administer the trust, and therefore may call upon legal, accounting and investment professionals for assistance. Our estate planning lawyers can help successor trustee(s) deal with the complexities of trust administration. Learn more about Estate Administration.
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