Many people have signed at least one power of attorney in their life. A power of attorney, which names a trusted family member, friend or advisor as your ‘attorney-in-fact’ to control your assets, is meant to be used if you are incapacitated.
Who needs long-term care insurance … and who might be able to do without it?
I know of someone who was joint account holder with his dad for many years, then later his dad then appointed him as power of attorney. How does that work? Is the son still a joint account holder?
A proper estate plan will help those left navigate the disposition of assets and the probate court system, especially for unmarried couples and some married same-sex couples.
Over the years I get all kinds of questions from people. And boy, have I heard some doozies. But one common one I get is called the ‘lazy (or poor) man’s (or woman’s’) estate planning.’ This type of estate planning has some very negative tax consequences.
The pandemic has kept our aging parents away from us and us away from them for over a year. This isolation is not total. Some people have access, some ignore warnings and some are intent on using the pandemic to hide their actions.
If a person close to you has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, it may be time to address some serious financial questions.
The person signing the power of attorney, which gives someone else the authority to act for them, is called the ‘principal’ and the person who is given the power to act for you is called your ‘agent.’
My Dad has been deemed unable to make his own decisions, and he does not have a Power of Attorney. The hospital said we need to apply for guardianship. What is that?
You don’t actually appoint someone power of attorney (POA). A POA is a document that you execute that allows someone to act on your behalf.
