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Since we cannot take our money & property with us, it should be given to those for whom we cared. For most of us that means simply giving the estate to family members and loved ones. Life Insurance can help too.  If the estate is going to be given away, it makes sense to give it to loved ones rather than to the government in the form of avoidable taxes.

The purpose of estate planning is to help a person build a large estate during life and to pass as much of it as possible to the loved ones upon death. This website and links, attempts to present the various types of available estate planning for the average estate.

An estate plan is the procedure by which a person attempts to preserve the assets of his estate during life and distribute them after death. The main considerations in estate planning are avoiding probate, reducing estate and inheritance taxes and quickly distributing the estate to the designated heirs.

A complete estate plan will consider methods for preservation of the estate during life by maximizing income while reducing income taxes that must be paid. The costs of probating a will are large. An old joke: If the person was not already dead, the cost to probate his estate would kill him.

Probate costs include court fees, appraisal fees, attorney fees and executor fees. Court costs and appraisal fees are modest: a couple of hundred dollars for an average estate. The real costs are the attorney and executor fees. Click here to view the rest of the article on Lawyeratlarge.com

Consumer Links

P.J. Hoskins, Esq.  Site on Estate Taxes Contesting a will or trust

CA State Bar - Do I need Estate Planning?

Free Advise.com ESTATE PLANNINGAsset ProtectionEstates Legalese

Free Advise.com Elder Law, ,  , , Wills Estate Tax Law, Gift Tax Law,

Does a family member have "Special Needs?"

California Courts - Self Help Site

Unclaimed Property (Escheat) with the State of California?

Estate Planning during a divorce - New Jersey Attorney's Site, so look for similarities...

CA Court Property Declaration form for spouses to list the assets and how they think the assets should be divided

 Estate Planing Center.com

Law Help.org Life & Estate Planning
Wills, Funerals, Conservatorships

IRS site on Estate & Gift Taxes

IRS Publication 950,

IRS FAQ's

2004 Estate Tax Rates

FAQ's from Free Advise.com