Estate

Effective estate management enables you to manage your affairs during your lifetime and control the distribution of your wealth after death. An effective estate strategy can spell out your healthcare wishes and ensure that they're carried out – even if you are unable to communicate. It can even designate someone to manage your financial affairs should you be unable to do so.

Estate Management 101

A will may be only one of the documents you need—and one factor to consider—when it comes to managing your estate.

Featured Presentation

Principles of Preserving Wealth

How federal estate taxes work, plus estate management documents and tactics.

Charitable Giving: Smart from the Heart

Do you have causes that you want to support with donations?

Will Power

Preparing for the eventual distribution of your assets may not sound enticing. But a will puts the power in your hands.

Test Your Estate Strategy Knowledge

Estate management can help ensure that your assets are transferred according to your wishes while managing tax issues.

Put It in a Letter

A letter of instruction provides additional and more personal information regarding your estate.

And the Executor Is

The right executor may help ensure the distribution of your assets is done with as little upheaval as possible.

Revising Estate Strategy Assumptions

Estate tax exemptions rules appear to be stabilizing, prompting many to reconsider conventional estate strategies.

Planning Your Legacy

Legacy or estate planning is part of good retirement planning. Here are a few things to consider when working on your plan.