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The purchase of a new home is exciting! It’s likely that when you purchase a home, even if it’s an older one, you’ll be offered a home warranty. Home warranties are offered as a means of protection against unexpected and expensive home repairs.

What is a home warranty?

A home warranty is like an insurance policy. It’s a contract between a home warranty company and a homeowner designed to protect against major home system and appliance breakdowns caused by regular use.

If something breaks down that is covered by the warranty, the homeowner simply calls the company, and the warranty company handles the repair.
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Two common ways in which people plan for the disbursement of their property are through a Last Will and Testament and by creating a trust. People often associate trust funds, or trusts, as tools only used by very wealthy people. However, there are advantages to establishing a trust from which people who are not wealthy can benefit.
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Probate is a term that refers to the legal process of distributing a deceased individual’s estate. This process includes demonstrating the validity of the Last Will and Testament or disbursing the property in cases where there is no will.

Cases in Which Probate Is Unnecessary

There are times when the probate process is not necessary.
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Many are not clear about the differences between financial planning and estate planning. Both are important but serve separate and distinct purposes. To manage your money now and to protect your wealth in the future, understanding how financial planning and estate planning work together is vital.
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Guardianship means that a family member of an elderly parent or relative is placed in a position of higher responsibility to make medical and daily care decisions. The question about who and when to name a guardian for your aging loved ones is a significant one.

Watching a parent age is emotionally difficult. Those who used to provide the care for you now need you to care for them. Under certain circumstances, it may become necessary for you to pursue court-appointed guardianship of your parents.

If you have taken time in the past to create an estate plan, or you’re considering doing so now, that’s good news.

Having an estate plan ensures that the wealth you’ve worked hard to create is protected. It makes sense that your assets should be distributed as you wish.

Which wellness design features do today’s home buyers want?

It’s a seller’s market at the moment in New York and New Jersey. Real estate attorneys have seen clients engage in frantic bidding wars in the quest for a new home as low mortgage interest rates and low inventory of houses have driven house prices up. And while sellers may not have to woo buyers to get a fair price, adding some trendy “wellness” upgrades to the home could bring an even higher offer to purchase.
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Are trusts just for celebrity estate planning?

New York and New Jersey estate planning attorneys assist clients from all walks of life-- from those with modest means to wealthy celebrities. Some people think that estate planning is only necessary if you are wealthy, but everyone over the age of 18 can benefit from estate planning. And as you go through different phases of life, your estate plan can be reviewed and revised as needed.
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It is great to have an estate plan in place. An estate plan is an important step towards protecting your wishes for yourself, your loved ones, and your assets you have spent a lifetime acquiring. An estate plan puts protections in place in the face of an otherwise uncertain future. While we can never plan for every future contingency or possibility, an estate plan can help cover a number of basis. That is why the most solid estate plans considers future possibilities and provides protections as best as possible.

While you may have heard of a will, you may not have heard of a pour over will. A pour over will, however, can be a valuable estate planning tool when properly employed. In particular, a pour over will can be a great safety net if you have put a trust in place to hold your assets in order to avoid the costly and time consuming proceedings involved in probate. Read on to find out what exactly a pour over will does and why it can be such a useful part of your estate plan.

What is a Pour Over Will?

In a pour over will, which is a legal document, the remaining assets in a person’s estate automatically transfer to a previously established trust when they die.

There are some big numbers flying around in real estate deals and this means potentially large financial consequences for both buyers and sellers alike. Closing costs, for instance, can get very pricey and may be more than you bargained for if you aren’t paying attention to the details, and there can be a great many details. In fact, many buyers and sellers end up being downright shocked by closing costs.