Happy New Year - Orlowsky & Wilson

From All of us at Orlowsky & Wilson we wish you a Happy and Healthy New Year. Should you need any legal services for Estate Planning, Wills & Trusts or Taxation please contact Alan Orlowsky by calling 847-325-5559. Have a safe and healthy New Year.

What you should know about Writing a Will

Let's talk about what you should know about writing a Will. By: Alan Orlowsky

Writing a Will is not the most pleasant of tasks. After all, by doing so you're not only acknowledging your own inevitable demise but actively planning for it. That might explain why so many adults avoid this cornerstone of estate planning. According to an AARP survey, 41% of boomers (born 1946 - 1964) and 71% of people under the age of 34 do not have a will in place. Procrastination (34%) was cited as the largest reason, followed by feelings it is unnecessary (21%) or too expensive (21%).

The truth is creating a Will is one of the most critical things you can do for your loved ones. Putting your wishes on paper helps your heirs avoid unnecessary hassles, and gain the peace of mind knowing that a life's worth of possessions will end up in the right hands. A Will is an important way to stay in control over who gets what of your property and by planning in advance you can also save your family time and money.

So What should you know about Writing a Will? Well let's talk about it.

What is a will?

A will is a simply a legal document in which you, the Testator, declare who will manage your estate after your death. Your Estate can consist of everything from bigger items such as property, to smaller sentimental valued items such as family photographs. The person named in the will to manage your estate is called the Executor, because he or she executes your stated wishes. A will can also serve to declare who you wish to become the guardian for any minor children or dependents. Within a will, you can specify everything from Sister Liz will be responsible for the children and the house, or Aunt Sally gets the silver, Cousin Megan the china, and so on. Someone designated to receive any of your property is called a "Beneficiary."

You should know that some types of property, including certain insurance policies and retirement accounts, generally aren't covered by wills. You should always list beneficiaries when you open these accounts. Check to make sure these are up to date, since what you have on file when you die should dictate who receives those assets.

What Happens if I die without a will?

If you were to die without a valid will, you'll become what's called Intestate. This means your estate will be settled based on the laws of your state that outline who inherits what. Probate, is the legal process of transferring the property of a deceased person to the rightful heirs. If no executor has been names, a judge appoints an administrator to serve in that capacity. This can also happen is a Will is deemed invalid. All wills must meet certain standards, such as being witnessed, to be legally valid. Again, requirements vary from state to state. What you should know is if a will is not in place, the administrator will most likely be a stranger to you and your family, and that person will be bound by the Probate laws of your state. As such, an administrator may make decisions that wouldn't necessarily agree with your wishes or those of your heirs.

Do I need an attorney to prepare my will?

You should always have an attorney assist you with any legal document. In most cases you are not required to hire a Lawyer to prepare your will, but the biggest reason you should is an experienced Attorney can prove valuable advice on your estate planning strategy such as Living Trusts. 
Do-it-yourself kits are widely available, or if you write your own will on the back of a napkin as long as you meet the legal requirement of your state it will be valid. If you don't know your state laws, it is important you seek an attorney for additional knowledge. A good tip is while you are working on your will, you should think about preparing other essential estate planning documents to ensure your wished are carried out while you're still alive.

Should my spouse and I have a joint will or separate wills?

Estate planner almost universally advise against joint wills, and some states do not even recognize joint wills. Odds are you and your spouse won't die at the same time, and there can be property that's not jointly held. Separate Wills make more sense, even though your will and your spouse's will might end up looking remarkably similar. In particular, separate wills allow for each spouse to address issues such as ex-spouses and children from previous relationships. Ditto for property that was obtained during a previous marriage. Be very clear about who gets what. Probate laws generally favor the current spouse.

In summary, it is important a will is in place, and more importantly it is critical it is done correctly, and abides by the state laws.

If you or a loved one needs any help writing a will or have questions, please feel free to contact Alan Orlowsky by calling 847-325-5559. Or visit our website at http://www.orlowskywilson.com.

Choosing a Life Insurance Provider - Lincolnshire IL

Choosing a Life Insurance Provider

Let's talk about Choosing a Life Insurance Provider. There are a number of factors that go into picking the right insurance company or companies for your insurance needs. The final decision will depend on what you are trying to accomplish.

Some factors that are commonly used by advisers when consulting with clients about their insurance needs include the following:


1. Rating

Ratings help in a general way to determine which companies are the strongest financially. Most ratings systems work on an easy-to-understand alphabetical structure similar to the credit markets. So a company that has a triple-A (AAA) rating is likely to be more financially sound than a company with a B rating. These ratings involve the opinions and judgments made by the ratings services.

There are 5 key rating services in the market today, including Standard and Poor's, Dun and Bradstreet, Weiss Research, Moody's Investors Services and A.M. Best. The issue is these various agencies have different scales with different letter ratings that do not necessarily correspond from one agency to another. In addition, not all insurance companies have ratings from each of the agencies.

In addition, there is a rating scale called Comdex. This places the company on a percentile ranking from 1 to 100. An insurance company with a Comdex Score of 90 would place it in the top 10% of all companies in financial strength. This percentile ranking has greatly simplified the understanding of all of the various ratings for the consumer. A Comdex score of at least 75 is desirable.

2. Underwriting

In addition to ratings, another key factor in your decision will be to look at how each insurance company rates you as the insured person. This is important because the better the rating you are assigned, the lower the insurance cost.

Some companies, often those with higher credit ratings, are very selective about who they select to insure. This results in a lower claims and higher profit for the company. Other companies specialize in insuring people with health problems. These are companies that are generally charging higher premiums to compensate for the increased risk.

If you are in poor health, your choice of carries may be limited.

3. Insurance Pricing

The actual pricing offer you receive for your insurance is also a factor in choosing a company. In larger cases, you will want to make sure that your under-witting file is seen by more than one company so that you will receive competitive bids. As long as the company with the lower premium meets the minimum rating screen that you and your adviser have established, it will make sense to go with the lowest premium possible.


4. Cost and Internal Rate of Return

A Calculation of internal rate of return (available from most companies as part of their illustration) will help you to compare one policy illustration or design with another. Because insurance costs, crediting rates, expenses, and other moving parts in an insurance contract vary from company to company, a way to compare the whole picture is to look at the death benefit at a given point in time relative to the premiums paid to that point in time. A good place to start is to look at the period of time around your life expectancy. If one policy shows that the internal rate of return (IRR) of 8.5% at life expectancy and another is showing an IRR of 6.8%, you will want to explore the policy features that are creating the difference.

In the end, your choice of companies is likely to be driven by a combination of all these factors, resulting in your choosing a company that has good ratings, offers a product that fits your needs at a price you can afford, from a company that has a good financial track record.

If you have questions about this post or about a particular legal situation, please contact Alan Orlowsky by calling 847-325-5559 or visit our website www.orlowskywilson.com. 

Family Disputes over Personal Property Northbrook IL

Let's Talk about Avoiding Family Disputes over Personal Property.
By Alan Orlowsky

It is quite often the personal property that causes the most heartache and disruption in families after a death. Money doesn't  usually have any sentimental attachment, but personal property can have a perceived  value far beyond its actual monetary worth. For example, there may be souvenirs from family vacations, various collectibles  or other items of sentimental value that are impossible e to divide or duplicate. It's helpful to discuss these things ahead of time, so you have a clear understanding of who wants what, and can anticipate and avoid problems after you're gone.

Generally speaking personal property is distributed under the laws of the state in which the decedent was a resident on their date of death. Real property (real estate), on the other hand, is subject to the laws of the state in which it is located. If you have significant personal property located outside of your official state of residence, distribution can be confusing. For example, if you own a Steinway piano that is located in your vacation home, the vacation home and Steinway piano will be treated differently.


Personal Property such as jewelry, antiques, artwork, family heirlooms and household effects can be passed on to your beneficiaries through a specific bequest: "I leave my Ming Vase to my sister Betty." But for most people, it would be overwhelming to try to inventory and choose a beneficiary for every last item you own. Instead, it is common to use a separate "Personal Property Memorandum" that is attached to, and incorporated by reference into your trust.


The Memo is generally a handwritten or typed list of your bequests to family or charities, which is signed and dated by you. They could cover each personal item that you own, but typically include only those items of financial value or of strong sentimental value - the types of things that could lead to disagreements among the heirs.

The benefit of a memo is that it can be easily changed if you sell something, give it away during life, or change your mind about who should receive it after you're gone. You simply throw the old memo away or destroy it,  and replace it with a new one. Each Personal Property memorandum should be dated, and the trust should contain instructions that if more than one memo is discovered after your death, the one with the most recent date is binding.

Of course, you should also provide for Personal Property that is not specifically listed on the Personal Property memorandum. Over the years, parents have come up with interesting ways to distribute Personal Property items that aren't the subject of specific bequests. They might instruct the executor or trustee to divide Monopoly money among the children, and let them "Bid" on remaining items. Or they might say that each child can choose one object, starting with the oldest and moving to the youngest (or vise versa), until all items are accounted for. Anything that is not selected can be given to Goodwill or the Salvation Army, or be included in an estate sale.

Most trusts will state that the trustee can dispose of Personal Property equitably to the beneficiaries, and if they can't agree on the disposition, the trustee can sell the items and split the proceeds of the sale according to the trust distribution plan.

If you have questions about this post or about a particular legal situation, please contact Alan Orlowsky by calling 847-325-5559 or email alan.orlowsky@gmail.com

This video is from the Radio Show "Left Right & You"
Tax Discussion - part 2 of 2
With Tim Elanz & Paul Edwards

Guest Speaker Alan Orlowsky

If you have questions about this post or about a particular legal situation, please contact Alan Orlowsky by calling 847-325-5559.