Fridley Community Education

The Concern: Our family has cabin, homestead, hunting land, farm or second home: How do we protect this family legacy and move its use and enjoyment into the future? The Problem: Various sources and forces threaten its very existence: The nursing home and Medicaid (MA), estate taxes, family divorces, creditor and bankruptcy issues, taxes and operating expenses, unequal resources of owners, the in-laws, and use and enjoyment equality. The Answer: We will provide real-life solutions and explore four paths to resolution that will solve our problems without driving the family apart or sacrificing the family legacy asset.

Stay up to date by expanding your technology knowledge and learn what you need to know about the mobile payment service called Venmo. Learn how to pay friends, businesses or receive money without using cash or checks. You’ll leave this class with a confident understanding of how to set up Venmo safely, fees to avoid, and real world scenarios you or your family and friends may use with this mobile payment option.

This is a relaxed and friendly open-forum seminar for participants with a seasoned Will & Trust attorney. Questions like: Should I avoid Probate? Is a Will good enough? Do I need a Trust? How does my plan deal with the nursing home? How do we gift the assets of husband and wife? What about separate assets not of the marriage? If I am alone, what tools protect me best? How do I decide who should serve in my estate plan? What is the death tax? How do I avoid leaving a mess for my children? Which Trust is best for my needs? Can I use a Transfer-On-Death Deed? How do my retirement assets operate in my Will or Trust? All questions will be answered!

We will be discussing lifestyle options for senior living. Should I stay and age in place - making home modifications to reduce safety risks OR should I go – moving to a home option that may be handicapped accessible, single level living? We will take an assessment and give you the tools to make educated decisions.

A vital part of every retirement or resettlement discussion involves the roadmap of issues that help us decide where we want to call home! Is it Taxes, the Political Landscape, the Weather, the location of Family assets, Debt or Income concerns in Retirement, Cost of Living, Health Concerns or . . . our Friends are already there! When should we start this discussion? Did you know many States do not tax Social Security, Pensions or other Qualified Retirement Income sources? Which are the worst states for Estate Taxes? How do we establish Domicile? How about quality of medical resources and retirement facilities – who is good, who is not-so-good? All these issues will be raised and discussed in an open and friendly manner with questions encouraged.

When should I apply for Social Security? How can I maximize my benefits? How will this affect my spouse? You have a lot of questions to answer. Mistakes can be costly. We can provide the guidance you need. Join us for a short presentation, Social Security: Strategize to Maximize, to learn how to sort through the options to help ensure the choices you make are tailored to your needs.

Contributing tax-deferred dollars in Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) is a big incentive for investors. But income taxes will come due once they start using the money. The class suggests potential strategies for reducing the taxes attendees and their heirs could pay.

The trust is a very popular component and tool to be used in our Estate Planning. However, there is a variety of vastly different Trust options to be used and the question arises: “Am I using the right Trust for my needs and goals?” Often used Trusts include: Living Trusts, Testamentary Trusts and Irrevocable Trusts, each serves a different purpose, each has a different result. One common problem that often needs addressing is the over-utilization of the Living Trust for goals or problems that it does not resolve. For example, “Does my Living Trust protect my assets against Medicaid and the nursing home?” The answer is probably not. The Irrevocable Trust and the Testamentary Trust each have their strengths and weaknesses as well. We will clearly define the strengths and weaknesses of these different types of Trusts and when to use them. Explore your goals and wishes to see where they fall in the realm of Trusts. Class encourages questions and we hope to provide answers that will set your mind at ease or assist you in the decision making in this area.