Estate Planning For Dummies, 2nd Edition

Get your arms around wills, trusts, probate, inheritance taxes, and other important estate planning essentials

Estate Planning For Dummies teaches you the ins and outs of estate planning. It’s all about drafting wills, dealing with probate, assigning powers of attorney, establishing living trusts, and beyond. Think you don’t have enough assets to merit estate planning? Think again. This everyone-friendly guide walks you through building a solid estate plan, whatever your current financial situation. In easy-to-understand language, you’ll learn the ins and outs of estate planning, including what happens to your stuff―cash, real estate, businesses, retirement funds, everything―when you pass away. This new edition is updated for the many recent changes in estate taxes and inheritance law. Make sure your assets get into the pockets of your heirs or wherever you want them to go, and learn how to accomplish it the For Dummies way.

• Understand state and federal estate and inheritance taxes
• Build an air-tight will and make sure your heirs get as much as they can
• Protect your estate’s privacy even after you’re gone
• Plan for the transition of a family business
• Prevent disagreements and uncertainty among your heirs
• Figure out how to pass on your digital assets

This friendly guide is a must for people of any age in the process of drafting their wills and planning where their assets ultimately end up.

Jordan S. Simon is a partner at the Venture West Group and coauthored the first edition of Estate Planning For Dummies.

Joseph Mashinski is an attorney and consultant with more than 19 years’ experience in estate plan­ning, insurance, employee benefits, and ERISA compliance.