When a spouse or parent passes away, the surviving spouse or children often worry about what will be left to them. This concern is not necessarily driven by greed but rather by the unknown of what will happen next. Are we going to be kicked out of the house? Will I be able to keep […]
May 25, 1926 – September 28, 1991 Born Miles Dewey Davis in Alton, IL, Davis was a famous jazz musician for nearly fifty years. In 1944, Davis sat in on trumpet with a band that included two other famous musicians – Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie.1 Following that experience, at age 18, he enrolled in […]
A reverse mortgage is when the owner of the home withdraws equity from the home and receives cash either as a lump sum, installment payments, line of credit or combination thereof. Reverse mortgages seem to give pause to most people. However, the negative reaction is most likely due to the lack of information regarding reverse […]
August 26, 1910 – September 5, 1997 Mother Teresa was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in Skopje in the Balkans. Mother Teresa pursued her life as a missionary at the age of 18 when she entered into the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It was in 1937 that Mother Teresa, then Sister Teresa, “…made her […]
August 29, 1915 – August 29, 1982 Today is one of those rare occasions when it is the anniversary of someone’s death but also the anniversary of their day of birth. It is has been 30 years since Ingrid Bergman passed away on her 67th birthday. Ingrid Bergman was an international film star whose acting […]
The New York Times Magazine recently ran an article on life settlements or viatical settlements. These settlements are the process in which individuals sell their life insurance policies to investors to receive cash now. As the article notes, “Life insurance is designed to benefit the living, a spouse or heirs, not those who perish.” However, […]
One of the purposes of probate is to provide notice of the decedent’s death to creditors so that they can seek payment for any unpaid debts. As Jayne Sykora mentioned in her post, What Happens to Debt at Death, personal representatives are able to identify creditors of the estate through the decedent’s mail and bills. […]
June 1, 1926 – August 5, 1962 It has been 50 years since the woman born as Norma Jeane Mortenson (later changed to Baker) passed away. Known as Marilyn Monroe, she died at the young age of 36. A recently published book, The Empty Glass, analyzes the ongoing conspiracy surrounding Monroe’s death.1 Ms. Monroe had […]
June 22, 1903 – July 22, 1934 Known as “Public Enemy Number One,” John Dillinger was born in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1903 and became one of America’s most notorious gangsters. While wanted for bank robberies throughout the Midwest, Dillinger became the focus of the FBI when he stole a sheriff’s car and drove it across […]
Safe deposit boxes are a great resource to store and protect valuable assets. However, they can cause problems during an estate administration. The first issue that arises is the lack of knowledge that the decedent had a safe deposit box. Often the individual administering the estate is neither aware of the existence nor the location […]
August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002 While I pride myself on my sports knowledge, my husband often reminds me of all the information I apparently do not know. Yesterday’s example revolves around Ted Williams as I began to write this post. Now, I know who Ted Williams was and do know of his baseball […]