Posted in Asset Protection,Real Estate Law,Tax Law & IRS Defense

The Firm is republishing a September 2014 blog post regarding the ability of Florida property owners to contest or appeal the assessed value of their property.  The republished blog, below, includes updated information for 2015.
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Posted in Asset Protection,Probate & Trust Administration,Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning

Medicaid has been around for many years, as it was designed to help low income people with healthcare. In today’s society, many people use Medicaid as their long-term care insurance and it pays for the majority of nursing home care for patients across the United States.
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Posted in Asset Protection,Probate & Trust Administration,Real Estate Law,Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning

Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship (JTWROS) is a form of joint property ownership available to two or more people and characterized by the right of survivorship. Upon one tenant’s death, the share of the property passes to the surviving co-tenants. There are five requirements for creation of a JTWROS: the right of survivorship and the four unities of possession, interest, title, and time.
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Posted in Asset Protection,Real Estate Law,Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning

A recent study conducted by Experian anticipates about $265 billion in home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) will begin entering a repayment period, affecting millions of consumers. HELOC originations, which continued to increase from 2005 until the start of the housing crisis, are generally divided into two periods. For the first ten years, a HELOC remains in the draw period, which allows consumers to use the line of credit while making minimum, interest-only payments. After ten years, many HELOCs enter the repayment period. This may cause a hike in monthly payments, sometimes as much as triple or quadruple the monthly payment amount during the initial draw period. Debt-relief consultants anticipate defaults to skyrocket as these HELOCs enter the repayment period.
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Posted in Asset Protection,Probate & Trust Administration,Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning

One of the many complicated facets of planning for a possible divorce as part of estate planning is the division of property. When a marriage dissolves, property that is classified as a marital asset will generally be equitably distributed between the parties. On the other hand, property that is classified as a nonmarital asset will not.
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Posted in Asset Protection,Business & Corporate Law,Tax Law & IRS Defense

Calendaring important IRS and tax authority deadlines can save you a lot of headaches at tax time.  To avoid paying penalties and other tax consequences, keep a calendar and review tax deadlines with your Accountant, CPA, Enrolled Agent, or Tax Attorney.  Jackson Law Group has tax attorneys that can assist you with IRS or other tax problems.  The below items are a few examples of important dates:
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Posted in Asset Protection,Probate & Trust Administration,Tax Law & IRS Defense,Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning

1. Not Understanding the Purpose of Asset Protection: Asset protection will not make you “judgment proof.” Someone can still obtain a judgment against you.  You must distinguish obtaining a judgment and collecting on a judgment, which is typically only done after a judgment is rendered.
2. Waiting Too Long To Begin Planning: Preventative planning is both most effective and least expensive before you have legal problems.
3. Believing That It Is Too Late To Protect Assets: It’s never too late to improve protection. Anything is better than doing nothing.
4. Thinking Creditors are Lazy or Not Smart: Don’t underestimate the skill and intelligence of your adversaries. Creditors and their attorneys are not lazy or thoughtless.  The court system can be a slow process.
5. Failure to Comprehend Vulnerability of Your Business: The shares of stock or membership interests you own are vulnerable to creditor attack.
6. Fraudulent Transfers and Conveyances: You cannot protect assets by giving them to family members.
7. Misunderstanding Salary Exemption: Salary exemptions can be complicated. Don’t be trapped into misunderstanding these concepts, especially for business owners.
8. Confusing Estate Planning With Asset Protection: Asset protection is oftentimes part of estate planning, but a living trust or will does nothing to protect your assets from creditors.
9. Confusing Bankruptcy Law and Asset Protection Law: The new bankruptcy law does not affect Florida’s unlimited homestead exemption and other exemptions outside bankruptcy court.
10. Giving Up Control Over Your Assets: The easiest asset protection plan is to give someone else control over your assets. This is all too often a poor solution.

If you own assets and are concerned about protecting them, avoid making the mistakes mentioned above.  For more information on developing an asset protection plan that is thorough and unique to your particular situation, we encourage you to contact a qualified, licensed attorney.

Posted in Asset Protection,Real Estate Law,Tax Law & IRS Defense,Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning

In a previous blog (click here), we posted about the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act (“MFDRA”) and how it had yet to be extended by Congress to cover mortgage debts forgiven in 2014.  MFDRA prevents homeowners who went through a short sale, foreclosure sale, a principal reduction, or some other type of waiver of a deficiency regarding their primary residence from being taxed on the amount of mortgage debt cancelled or forgiven.
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