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Clintonville and German village
Communities,
Hello! I hope you had a great holiday. I want to thank
you for your support last year in getting my business off the
ground. It truly was a great first year! I’ve met many
fascinating clients and am looking forward to working with them
again. I trust that you find the tax planner helpful in
organizing your documents and preparing your taxes.
Now that the new year is here, I want to inform you of
an recent development. I successfully took the Ohio Bar exam
this summer. This enables me to create estate plans here in
Ohio. Previously, I prepared estate plans for the military
working with over 200 service-members to ensure they had a plan
in place. Now I have the opportunity to provide this service to
you.
I’ve
always been fascinated by estate planning. When done correctly
it does more than just provide financial support and savings on
taxes. It makes sure conflicts are minimized. I always remember
when a widow came to my office three years after her husband’s
death. The only piece of property that the husband’s will
distributed was a car the he owned. The widow had tried to sell
the car but was unable to transfer the title. The will listed
the son, who lived in California, as the executor. After finding
out what had to be done, it took more than three months for the
son
to be relinquished of his role as the executor so this widow
could sell her car. An attorney advising the husband that the
beneficiary and the executor should be the same person would
have prevented this. Proper estate planning can avoid probate,
can prevent debts from being passed on to your spouse and can
even reduce or eliminate capital gains tax- regardless of the
size of the estate. This can be done without setting up a living
trust or other more complex estate planning techniques. The key
is to have a plan that works and understand what you’re doing.
Now I’ve
been asked if the wills and estate plans from the internet work.
Truth is, the ones from reputable sites typically do work. A
will or estate plan made from these sites and done correctly
will be just as legal as one drafted by myself or another
attorney. However, the internet site cannot provide personal
advice and input. Wills and estate plans are complex documents.
As an attorney, I’ve done hundreds of wills, I’ve seen many of
the problems that come up. I know tax law, I know how to ensure
that you protect you assets from Medicaid. Practical and expert
advice is the difference between a functional will and a
effective will. I typically spend 60 to 90 minutes with each
client explaining their options and what they need to do to
ensure the plan works as intended. Unless you really take the
time to learn and understand estate planning, hire a
professional and make sure it’s done right.
Most people know they need a will and estate plan but
continue to push it off. Now is the perfect time; the holidays
are over and time is not such a precious commodity. Come in now
and I’ll take $100 off you tax preparation fees if you combine
this with doing your estate planning.
Cross
this task off your to do list; you’ll be glad you did.
Sincerely,
Mark Dent, Esq.
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