When the marriage of Gina and Edward ended in divorce and it became necessary to allocate property, the trial court charged with ruling on this matter had to sort through multiple gifts made by Gina’s father while the couple was married. Understandably, Edward generally argued as much as possible that such gifts were made to …
In the past, I have written articles on Pipelines and Eminent Domain. These were very popular and with the County announcing there is another pipeline coming through Walker County, I have written a follow up on pipeline negotiations. Thank you to Tiffany Dowell Lashmet with the Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Service for allowing me to …
Greg Lehrmann wrote an excellent article on the use of a 1031 tax exchange in a divorce, so I thought this would be a good topic for this week’s column. Keep in mind, this will require the parties and their counsel to work together for the benefit of all. However, if it is a “war of …
Perhaps it is a desire to maintain independence or the rising cost of skilled nursing care, but the fact is, many seniors want to stay in their homes as they age. However, if you are like me, raising your kids, working, trying to take care of yourself, and now caring for aging parents can be …
Many of my clients have heard me tell the story of my grandfather clock. My grandmother, Pauline K. Smith (MeMe), gave me this clock. Like many families, we had Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter with our family at MeMe’s house. These traditional family get togethers are etched in my mind. One Easter, MeMe asked all in …
Dementia is a subject close to my heart. As anyone who has ever dealt with a loved one suffering from dementia knows, the cost are high and the stress of losing your loved one is tremendous. The GUIDE program, launched by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), aims to improve the quality of …
Last week I mentioned ABLE accounts as a possible tool for loved ones with disabilities, in this week’s column I decided to give a little more information on this subject. One account some families use to provide for special needs adults is the ABLE account, a tax-advantaged savings account for individuals with disabilities, named from …
Continue reading “Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014”
As the 89th Regular Session of the Texas Legislature draws to a close, I thought it might be interesting to provide a legislative report covering significant bills impacting real estate matters in Texas. Senate Bill 17 SB 17 is one of several measures introduced this session aimed at restricting certain types of foreign ownership of …
Continue reading “Real Estate Matters In The 89th Regular Session”
While the simplicity of a Will driven estate plan in Texas is most favored, some situations dictate using a trust instead. Navigating the details of a trust in the pursuit of crafting an optimal estate plan can be overwhelming. All 50 states have different systems of probate. The ultimate purpose of probate is to transfer …
There is no escaping death. However, how you organize your affairs can make life much easier for your loved ones. The reality is,less than half of all Americans have even the most basic estate planning documents. As a result, they voluntarily give up their freedom to decide what will happen to their assets when they …
