FAITH, FAMILY, AND THE FARM
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Orange City Estate Planning Blog

What Important Dates Does a Retiree Need to Circle?

The start of a new year—and a new decade, to boot—is a great time to assess your financial situation and look ahead. You’ll want to consider moves for the long term, but it’s also critical to pay attention to the details in the short-term, so you don’t miss an important deadline.

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How Do I Incorporate My Business into My Estate Planning?

Running and owning a business is just like raising a child: Both are investments in the future, and both require a lot of time, resources and effort to raise successfully. One can argue that you would treat your business like you’d treat a child; you’d want it to succeed even after you’ve passed on or retired.

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How Should Baby Boomers Claim Their Social Security?

Social Security benefits have long been a critical part of Americans’ retirement income plans. After all, the monthly benefits provide a stream of income that is adjusted for inflation annually and can’t be outlived. With the decline of pensions and increasing life spans, Social Security is now playing a larger role in shoring up retirees’ nest eggs.

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Watch Your Language: Income

The Medicaid definition of “income” comes from federal law and reads as follows: Income is “[a]nything a person receives either in cash or in kind that can be used to meet the person’s basic needs of food, clothing, or shelter.” [Read More]

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The Biggest Mistake You Make Before Turning 65

We are about to experience – some say we’re already experiencing – the biggest workforce shift from full time work to retirement in United States history. If you’re a Baby Boomer, you are a part of this generational transition. If you can see retirement on the horizon, then I have a warning for you: there’s a train following close behind retirement that you absolutely must plan for: nursing home care. [Read More]

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The Medicaid Planning Hoax: 3 Myths

Nursing homes are incentivized by the state to perpetuate the hoax because the daily nursing home rate paid by the state is lower than the private pay rate. Lawyers who don’t know anything about the Medicaid regulations are telling people they have no options for planning for Medicaid eligibility. How do you overcome misinformation or a lack of information? You get educated. Here are three myths, rooted in the Medicaid Planning Hoax, that are all wet. [Read More]

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Ask the Elder Law Lawyer: How Much Do I Need to Save for Retirement?

If you’re like 70% of people in the US who have a retirement plan, you still haven’t worked with a professional such as an elder law attorney in Northwest Iowa in order to determine how much money you really need to save. A recent study found that only about 30% of this group has actually sat down with a professional to come up with a realistic number. [Read More]

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