Estate planning basics
Beneficiary designations: why they matter
How beneficiary forms on retirement accounts work, why they usually control who inherits the account, and the situations where an old form causes problems.
4 min read
Topic
Estate planning basics
Beneficiaries, wills, trusts, powers of attorney, probate and inherited accounts.
6 articles
Estate planning basics
Federal estate and gift tax basics
How the federal estate and gift taxes work together, the 2026 exclusion amounts, which gifts need a return, and why most estates owe no federal estate tax.
5 min read
Estate planning basics
Inherited IRAs: the basic rules
How the withdrawal rules for an inherited IRA depend on who the beneficiary is, including spouse options, the 10-year rule and how inherited Roth IRAs differ.
5 min read
Estate planning basics
Powers of attorney and health care directives
What a financial power of attorney, a health care proxy and a living will each do, when they take effect, and what generally happens when none is in place.
4 min read
Estate planning basics
What probate is and how it works
Probate is the court process for settling a person's estate. Learn the usual steps, which assets go through it, which pass outside it, and the tax filings involved.
4 min read
Estate planning basics
Wills vs. trusts: what each one does
A plain-English comparison of wills and revocable living trusts: what each document controls, how each relates to probate, and what neither one covers.
4 min read