Estate-planning Books

For those who are lost in this area, and looking for a great no-nonsense guide for how to proceed, You have found your guide!! The information is wonderful, and laid out in such an easy to follow format. This book is a must have for anyone who faces the estate sale dilema.

Author Julie Hall (a.k.a. The Estate Lady) promises, "This book will provide you with the trustworthy counsel you need when facing the monumental task of walking your parents through their final days and then settling their estate." She keeps that promise in fifteen chapters that deal with things like:
- how to tell your parents are failing,
- the importance of a will,
- what an executor is and does,
- how to protect the estate from grasping neighbors, friends and relatives,
- how to ascertain the value of estate items,
- how to clean out your parents' house, and more.

Important points covered in each section are repeated within the chapter as lists, definitions, and words of advice in sidebar-type boxes. Each chapter concludes with "What Can I Do Now?" - a checklist of three pertinent actions for the reader to perform at that particular juncture of the process.

The book ends with three appendices:
- a checklist for parent care,
- a list of helpful resources, and a list of estate documents,
- information that children should locate and keep accessible.

Though the subject matter makes this a hard book to read, Hall's sympathetic tone and reasoned approach helps the reader quell naturally arising angst in favor of paying attention to what needs to be done. Her wealth of stories and anecdotes keeps the book interesting. If the story of neighbors who cleaned out the valuables of a senile lady's house, paying her mere dollars when the pieces were worth hundreds, doesn't outrage you, some of the stories of family treachery will.

Hall's real goal is to move the reader beyond outrage to action. If you are a boomer with aging parents, this book will motivate and guide you. It will show you how to set things up now while your parents are still alive so the estate isn't a nightmare to settle later when there is no will, no knowledge of where important papers are kept, and no list of who gets what. (However, if your parents have died intestate -- without a will -- it walks you through that scenario as well.) If you are a boomer or a boomer's parent, this book was written to motivate you to look after your stuff yourself and not leave it to your kids.

If you're a boomer with failing parents, get this book. As someone who was executor of my mother's estate two years ago, I can vouch for how bang-on its advice is. I only wish I had had it then.

If you're a boomer or younger, get this book in any case, not for your parents' estate but for your own. Follow its advice and leave your children one of the best gifts you can give them - a straightforward and well-administered estate.

Dealing with the death of a parent can be very difficult. Emotions run high and feelings are in a state of volatility and turmoil. If this wasn't enough, there is also the problem of dividing up the deceased person's estate and this problem is compounded further when there is no will; no official document that says exactly how to distribute assets. Add to that the problem an adult child experiences when emptying out a parent's home that is overloaded with things, and you have all the ingredients for a highly stressful situation.

This is where The Boomer Burden can help. Written by a woman with plenty of experience with estates, wills, and other related issues, this book is intended to serve as a guide to adult children who want to do the right thing, honor their parents, and get through the ordeal with as few hard feelings as possible. The book begins with the topic of wills and it drills into the reader's head just how important it is to have a will- not just for parents who are nearing the end of the line, but also for themselves. Without a will, a court will decide how to divide up the assets of an estate and, more often than not, the division of property will be unacceptable to the children and will probably not coincide with the desires of the parents. This is why it is so important to have a will, and the author stresses and then re- stresses this point over and over as you read.

After the issue of wills has been emphasized to excess, The Boomer Burden then brings up some other important issues that many may relate to. One is the problem associated with older parents who are still alive but are too sick to care for themselves and need to enter an assisted living facility. Many seniors will stubbornly refuse to leave their homes for a multitude of reasons; some valid, and others bogus. The Boomer Burden offers some tips on ways to convince reluctant parents that they would be better off if there was someone around the clock to help them. The book also offers some alternatives that might be more acceptable to certain people, like having a nurse check in periodically throughout the week, at the senior citizen's own residence. The book also offers some tips on ways to convince older parents to start the cleanup process by eliminating the accumulation of things they have held onto over the years- particularly those things that have little value.

What to do with so much stuff is another important component of this book. As The Boomer Burden points out, there are likely to be some surprises along the way when adult children walk through a deceased parent's house and start to open boxes, check cupboards, open drawers, etc. Many children are shocked at the large accumulation of stuff stored in attics, garages, basements, cupboards, and other places. Bread bags, cool whip containers, old newspapers, and old magazines are among the many discoveries just waiting to be found and the decision on what to do often comes down to either making a charitable donation or renting a large dumpster to discard the old magazines, papers, etc. Always check through things first- there could possibly be a collectable among that garbage. An old newspaper from an ordinary day of the week is worth nothing, but a newspaper with an important world news headline story could be worth some big bucks, so check before you toss.

The Boomer Burden is geared toward baby boomers whose parents are nearing their final days and it was written to address some of the issues common to senior citizens of this generation. Parents of baby boomers grew up during difficult times and this is part of the reason why they have a greater tendency to hoard things. Their generation is often very frugal and believes you shouldn't throw away anything that might have some use in the future. This is why it is so common to find certain items in such abundance in the homes of individuals of this generation.

The Boomer Burden is written in a practical style, but with a friendly and helpful tone. The author wants everyone to be prepared and wants to minimize family trauma. She also realizes that there is plenty of work to be done both before and after the passing of a parent, so she wastes no time rolling up her sleeves and telling you, the reader, what needs to be done each step of the way. The author is friendly, but firm. Wills need to be completed, houses need to be cleaned, and other important decisions have to be made. There is little time to procrastinate, and this highly useful guide offers estate advice that, while not necessarily something we like to think about, is practical and sensible. Following its many words of wisdom will not only save you loads of garbage, it will also save you loads of grief during this especially difficult time.

I bought this book because the advice given applies to my specific situation, a baby boomer getting close to having to deal with end-of-life issues for my parents. The author bases her suggestions and advice on experience and has good credibility. The information is not only useful for dealing with parents, but preparing for my own end-of-life situation as well. There are many hard truths in the book that many of us fail to face up to, but need to in a responsible way. I'm buying more copies of this book for a sibling and for my estate executor. It's a very practical book with excellent advice. It's easy to read.

The author did an excellent job in detailing the process of cleaning up your parents house, dividing the stuff and liquidating the estate. She was in-depth, followed through with details, experiences and multiple options. Really a great book for trying to tackle estate division with ease. I only wished I read the book prior to my parents slowing down. Once they are gone you cannot asked them any questions -- like "who's in the picture". The author has great tips on supporting your parents during the later years, knowing when your parents need more help than you can offer and easing the burden of their wonderful lifetime of memories. The lawyers get to handle the formal legal notifications but this book is really for the executors who have to clear up the STUFF. A great buy!

I felt the book was easy to read. Not one to be read in one sitting, however. I have done extensive estate planning, will preparation, and will updates. However, this book presented some options that I am considering. It also showed me a couple of loopholes that I thought I had closed, that I probably don't. Well worth the money and time to read. I expect to go back to this book several times. I will be taking it with me to an attorney appointment.

This book probably presents every scenario you can think of if you want to protect your estate. Reading this book will provide you with intelligent questions while you discuss your estate planning with your attorney.

The book is not only informative, but also entertaining and easy to read. No legaleez to wade through. I highly recommend it.

Estate planning is so important if you don't want your son in law running off with half your estate in the event of your kid's divorce. This book was a great asset to me ... and a real eyeopener as to what can happen at the reading of your will if you haven't equalized everything. the author even gives you his phone number that readers can call and ask questions free. The book is so good I bought 4 extra copies for friends.

Only estate book I've seen written in an easy-to-read, mini-case-study format. Very practical and thought-provoking advice. Tends to focus on little worst-case scenarios in an attempt to get people to plan properly for all the things that can go wrong in an estate.

For what it's worth, I thought the book was generally best-suited for estates with $100,000 to about $2,000,000 in assets. Don't get me wrong, there's something in here for all estate sizes - especially for people just starting the process of developing a plan. However, don't buy this book looking for technical discussions of advanced tax-minimizing strategies. If you or your clients have estates over this $2MM mark, this book can be a great thought-provoker, but some of the advice isn't really suitable for larger estates.

I have several estate planning books...the "how to" type and they are great. This is the book you need to read before you start filling in the blanks. I wish my parents had read this book. It would have saved my family relationships. This book gives you the basic information you need before drawing up your trust. Protect your beneficiaries and prevent family conflict by reading this book!

This is a very good book, I've read several real estate books in the past and this one is one of the better ones. Content is more down to the real world and has a lot of number crunching which is great. Recommended reading.

This is a book that turns conventional wisdom on it's ear. This book was eye-opening for me in much the same way that "Rich Dad Poor Dad" was years ago. This book is a great starting point for anyone interested in real estate investing. I also recommend looking up their podcast on I-tunes called "The Real Estate Guys".

I learned of the book through a weekly podcast of Real Estate Guys Radio, which is hosted by the authors. I have read many books on real estate investing, but this one really challenged my thinking on several philosophies. (I hate to admit this, but I had some similar ideals to the fictitious Conrad Soomer in the introductory section).

Since finishing the book, I have created a written plan and made an offer on a six unit apartment building. I have also re-evaluated my previous guiding principle of paying down loans faster and am planning to pull some equity out of existing properties.

I strongly recommend this to any reader who understands that real estate investing is a proven way to build net worth, but needs a kick in the pants to get started.

I gained so much from reading (and re-reading sections) of the book, I bought copies for all my RE partners. I read A LOT of real estate books and was very impressed with the ideas and the presentation. A must for newbies to help you get the concepts down and experienced people to reflect and review and learn some new things.

These guys have a great and entertaining way of writing about real estate. They are also honest, there's none of this "make a million overnight with real estate" garbage. Instead they lay out the foundations for changing your mindset, which a lot of books dont even mention. How are you going to win at the real estate game if you have the wrong mental attitude and work ethic going in? After they change your attude, they lay the foundation for getting started in real estate, and telling you realistically that there will be ups and downs, but over the long haul, like a 15 year or more period, you will make substantial wealth with real estate. Loved the tone of the book as well, funny and frank with their information. They have a home study course, which I'm sure goes into more detail than this book does, and I'm going to order it. But this book is a great place to start.

When a close relative passed away very unexpectedly, this book helped guide me through all the legal issues. In a very difficult time, it truly helped keep me afloat in a sea of the unknown.

My Mother passed away and we thought all the paperwork was in order and it was not. I got this book from Amazon and it has outlined every detail and possible stituation. I went and got all the forms and and in the middle of probate right now. Very, very well written for a simple probate case and non complicated estates.
If there are people who will contest the will or complicated properties, business deals; most likely, you will need a lawyer and probating yourself will not work. But if it is very clear and simple, you can probabe yourself. Great book, worh every penny spent on it.

This book really helped my wife go through the probate process for her mother's estate. Highly recommended book!

This is a great book for going through the probate process. It takes
you through the entire process and explains all the jargon. The only
problem I had with it is that if your probate includes anything which
is a little out-of-the-ordinary, e.g., heirs/beneficiaries who may contest the will, it does not help. However, one book cannot cover 100% of
the possible cases. This book probably covers 95% of the probate cases
and is helpful even if you are one of the "odd-cases" and you are not familiar with the probate process.

If you can only purchase one book on probate in California, this book should be your first stop. I am in the process of probating my mother's estate and I will save at least $20,000 by using this book. There a dozens of forms, tips and tons of information on the subject. If you are motivated and organzed, this is the guide to help you avoid the high cost of attorneys in probate. I cannot urge you STRONGLY enough to use this book as your guide to probate in California.

The best way one can prevent themselves from becoming a burden on their families as they age is making sure the money they saved for their retirement stays saved for retirement and is only used for that purpose. "Alive and Kicking: Legal Advice... for Boomers!" grants legal advice so you can keep your money so when you finally do go and kick that bucket, your family has something other than massive debts to remember you by. Tips on Living wills, scams and identity theft, caring for your own parents in your own advanced age, issues involving age discrimination, driving, sex, and more are covered. While treating itself as a law book first, "Alive and Kicking: Legal Advice... for Boomers!" isn't afraid to crack a joke or bust out a poem now and again, giving a different and attractive flavor, making it highly recommended for anyone who is rapidly approaching retirement age and wants to be prepared for it in the modern world. Also recommended to community library law shelves.

What I liked about the book is the vast amount of useful information on all areas of planning for ones over age 50 years. And its a book that my son who is under age forty, found interesting, because it discusses issues that many people may never have thought about. It also is a book that dispells the notion that becoming sixty or older, means getting 'old' and unable to do many of the things we love doing in our forties or fifties. Cannot recommend the book enough.

Who would have thought that serious and important legal and financial matters could not be dished out with generous helpings of humor? This book clearly proves that theory wrong. An easy read, the authors never skip a beat when it comes to thoroughly discussing what readers need to know about boomer legal matters. I've recommended this book on many occasions.

This book is a humorous treatment of the serious business of the legal aspects of aging. Chock full of useful information and every page is entertaining.

Whether your reading preference is poetic, humorous, pragmatic, or just plain down to earth, Hegland and Fleming cover difficult legal issues in a way that makes you want to keep reading! This information is must to have in every home, whether yet boomers or not!

The "60-Minute Estate planner" does the best job I've seen of being comprehensive, and yet easy to read at the same time. The graphic flow charts with their accompanying tables are a great aid to understanding. Even if you're not planning your estate this book is important to read. The book deepens your appreciation of how important it is for the Congress to repeal federal death taxes.

Back in 1999, I decided to do some estate planning. I decided to buy about 5 books to first learn the basics of estate planning......then see an estate planning attorney to set up my estate plan.

Of the five books that I read on estate planning, Kraemer's book was by far the best book. The main reason I liked Kraemer's book was his use of example flow charts, which show what happens to the money as each spouse dies. These flow charts also allow you to easily calculate the estate tax due at each step of the process.

The other books were very dry and boring.......and without the flow chart approach...it was not clear to me how bypass trusts work.

I highly recommend Kraemer's book as the best book on estate planning.......primarily due to the flow charts.

Kraemer also explains that the use of disclaimers can be a good thing.......and a good way to deal with the changing estate tax laws.

Kraemer's book allowed me to understand the basics of estate planning and bypass trusts. I was able to save time and money then working with an estate planning attorney to set up our bypass trusts.

Other good books on investing which may help you build a large enough estate so you get to worry about the problem of estate planning are shown below:

Index Mutual Funds: How to Simplify Your Financial Life and Beat the Pro's
The Richest Man in Babylon
Bogle on Mutual Funds: New Perspectives for the Intelligent Investor
The Millionaire Next Door
The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio
A Random Walk Down Wall Street: The Time-Tested Strategy for Successful Investing, Ninth Edition
The Coffeehouse Investor: How to Build Wealth, Ignore Wall Street, and Get On With Your Life
The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing

Required reading for those wishing to estate plan with a systematic and informed approach. Excellent step by step directions help the reader learn information needed to work efficiently with an estate planner or other professionals and achieve desired results. Unique, innovative charts, flow diagrams and planning documents clarify concepts difficult to grasp through words alone. If you have an estate plan in place this excellent volume will confirm its appropriateness and provide helpful fine-tuning tips. This book contains all the various scenarios of estate planning allowing the reader to choose the relevant ones. It is interesting, well written and a valuable reference resource.

This book, like it's earlier volumns is a must read for anyone facing the challenges of estate planning either for themselves or their loved ones.

The 60-Minute Estate Planner has been an invaluable resource. I have all three editions and continue to find this book very useful. It provides quick and accurate answers to a variety of questions. This is the best book I've seen on estate planning.

H. Thuesen

As a student at Yale Law School planning to go into estate planning, I found this book very helpful. Highly recommended for anyone who needs to plan their estate or for law students taking estate tax or planning courses. This book is easy to understand, well organized, and provides a good amount of detailed information, not just vague ideas. Highly recommended.

This book provides an easy to understand overview of estate planning plus easy to understand detail on many special circumstances. It is very easy to understand which estate planning techniques are right for you, and there are many examples that illustrate how the techniques work. Approximately half of this book is relevant to everyone. The other half gives clear, common sense explantions of advanced planning techniques that are typically reserved for those fortunate enough to be planning a high net worth estate (lets say $1M+). The advanced techniques are not for do it yourselfers, but the book gives you a good understanding of the issues and lets you converse intelligently with an attorney.

Now in a newly updated and expanded seventh edition, Plan Your Estate is a resource provided by attorneys Denis Clifford and Cora Jordan which is packed from cover to cover with everything anyone needs to know to ensure their worldly goods are promptly willed to loved ones. Written in no-nonsense terms that the non-specialist general reader can readily grasp, individual chapters clearly address wills, how to avoid probate, living trusts, property-control trusts, naming guardians for children and leaving property to children, estate taxes, living wills, how to reduce estate taxes, and much, much more. Especially recommended for individuals who own a business or who have children from a former marriage, Plan Your Estate is a "must-have", "do-it-yourself" legal resource, which is applicable to all American states except for Louisiana. Even those who prefer to let a professional handle the whole process of estate planning would be well served to read Plan Your Estate cover to cover, before stepping into an attorney's office where time is money and the clock is running.

Great for law students taking an estate planning course or an estate and gift tax course. Also good for people wanting to learn about estate planning in general. I would recommend this book.

This book is a must buy resource for persons interested in estate planning. Whether you are planning to do-it-yourself or use a lawyer, it is good to know what your options are. I am much better informed after reading this book.

Great estate planning ideas and stories to get you thinking about how you want to provide for your loved ones, so that as you do your estate planning you can also transmit your family values.

This is a great book for anyone in the financial services industry or for those specializing in estate planning. These are real world cases that illuminate the need for proper planning by a qualified professional. This is also a great book if you are planning your own estate or you find yourself thrown into managing an estate for parents or loved ones. I can't say enough good things about this book or its authors.

I enjoyed the book, Best Intentions, and have given copies to several friends. It includes real-life examples that are easy to understand and addresses hard to face issues well. For those of us 'Baby Boomers' who do have the best of intentions for loved ones we will someday leave behind, it is a good way to start the dialogue and plans for the inevitable.

Using real stories, the author tried to tell you just a will may not be enough. You have to think, plan carefully before writing a will to make sure it is what you want to do with your leftover.

The stories show you a lot you never thought of. Worth reading for everyone.

An excellent book -- the best I've ever read on the subject. As a financial advisor I can't recommend it enough. Most find estate planning confusing. This book is not confusing. It's an easy read. Each simple, short, touching story illustrates a different problem that can arise by not doing good estate planning. It will make you think about your own situation with more clarity than was possible before. This book could be called Chicken Soup For Your Legacy.

I got my book within the time specified and was exactly as the seller described it. I am very pleased with my purchase.

This book is of course informative. It is comprehensive. But what sets it apart is the fact that it is very educative and well written. The authors ask you to think deeply about the philosophy behind the "right" to pass down property to one's heirs, and then proceed to complicate conventional wisdom by pointing out that this is by no means a "right" in many places on planet earth. They also complicate the picture further by furnishing examples from French and Spanish common law as well as outstanding examples from Indian and slave law. How should the federal government properly discharge its trust obligations to Indian tribes? How can property own property? Very vexing questions indeed.

Do yourself a favor and pick this one up. I'm not a lawyer, just a DIY autodidact, and I appreciate this book's intellectual substance immensely, not just its command of the facts. This seventh edition is current and anticipates the 2010 and 2011 anticipated "changes" to the tax code, along with some excellent insight.

Don't just get it because this casebook provides good "training" on the subject of Wills, Trusts, and Estates. Get it because the enthusiasm the authors bring to the subject shines through on almost every page and because this is a very important subject that every citizen in a "democracy" like ours needs to know.

I was very happy with my purchase. It came in the condition as promised and sooner than expected. I would definitely purchase again from this seller. Thanks!

I love this book. The authors do a great job of selecting interesting cases, covering the material thoroughly, and adding humorous footnotes that together make this the best textbook in law school.

This is an excellent textbook on Wills and Trusts. I received the book on
time in mint condition. Case Closed.

This is an excellent read for the lay person trying to either understand what the steps are to plan her disposition wishes or confrm that she has put everything in the proper order. The author writes in clear easy to understand language and neatly summarizes the key points of each chapter at the end of each chapter. Women need to take more care of their financial life and reading this book can be the first step.

As an author and a practicing attorney in the field of estate planning, I am always on the lookout for materials, particularly readable books, that clearly, simply, and accurately explain some of the unfortunately complicated issues that clients must understand in developing and planning their estates. This concern is a bit compounded when one is dealing with women clients, since in many instances their circumstances are often unique. Thus, I was positively thrilled with the publication of Attorney Annino's book, "Women & Money." In a clear and accurate way, Patricia covers virtually every issue that women face in planning their estates. I cannot recommend the book more highly, and in fact I am planning to purchase a supply of copies to give to my own clients.

Alexander A. Bove, Jr.
Boston, Massachusetts

As an attorney practicing in the field of estate planning, I read Patricia Annino's book hoping to find it a good resource for my women clients. Not only will I be reommending Women & Money to my clients, but am giving a copy to my mother for Mother's Day this year! The book presents a lot of complicated estate planning, financial, and tax matters in easy to understand terms with clear and realistic examples that women can easily relate to whether they are single, married, divorced, or widowed. In addition to explaining the legal aspects of planning, Patricia gives great tips, hints, and practical advice throughout the book. I definitely recommend it.

Here, at long last, is a book that provides women a roadmap of the financial world. No matter how hectic your life might be, this book is worth the time to read. Patricia Annino's depth of expertise is demonstrated through storytelling. She makes it easy to face financial questions that are so often emotionally intimidating. Whether you are single, married, divorced or widowed, whether you are living alone or responsible for others, this book is a gem precisely because it raises the right questions and provides a menu of answers. This book stands to become a classic. Mothers will sent copies to their daughters with notes in the margin. Young single women will read the book in their 20's and go back to it again and again as their life unfolds.

Annino's book provides the basic legal knowledge women need to deal with problems such as caring for elderly parents or young children, preparing for death or disability of self or spouse, whether to buy insurance, etc. However, there is no dry legalese: the advice is straightforward and abundantly illustrated with interesting stories from her law practice. In chapters aimed at women in various stages (divorcing, single, married, etc.) Annino seems to be having a personal conversation directly with the reader, offering lots of practical advice. Even has a fashionably pretty cover! Ladies: start your studies with this book.