Seek and Find!
When you die, you leave behind your estate. Your estate consists of your assets—all of your money, real estate, and worldly belongings. Your estate also includes your debts, expenses, and unpaid taxes. After you die, somebody must take charge of your estate and settle your affairs. This person will take your estate through probate, a court-supervised process that winds up your financial affairs after your death. The proceedings take place in the state where you were living at the time of your death. Owning property in more than one state can result in multiple probate proceedings. This is known as ancillary probate.
“I once had a client tell me his goal was to die with just enough money to pay his very last doctor’s bill,” says CAPTRUST Financial Advisor Mike Gray. Even though the comment was made in jest, the client was serious about not exhausting his money too soon. Gray says this is a common concern.
After an illustrious career in drug development and research, Dr. Robert Ruffolo retired from Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in 2008. For decades, he gave his all as a scientist and pharmaceutical executive. His crowning achievement was the discovery of carvedilol, a revolutionary treatment for congestive heart failure that has helped tens of millions of patients and for which he was honored with some of his industry’s most prestigious awards.
As part of her PhD program in creative writing, Anne Youngson drafted a short story each week and then reviewed it with her academic advisor: a successful, well-connected professional author with a long and admirable career. But one week, instead of a short story, she brought him a longer story—something she had been working on for a while.
A Roth account is one way to save money for retirement. Depending on your personal financial picture, Roth savings may also help you reduce your tax bill. In this Lessons in Financial Experiences (LIFE) video, learn about Roth accounts and how they differ from other retirement savings vehicles, like employer-sponsored plans or individual retirement accounts (IRAs).
Question: My retirement savings and investments are spread between multiple financial institutions. Should I combine them, or are there benefits to keeping things separate?
Question: I run a family business that my children will inherit. How can I make sure they are financially prepared for this transition?
Mitzi and Steve Deal of Charlotte, North Carolina, like to think of their mountain house as a gift to their family—one that will keep giving for generations.
