Page 13 - Martin Downs Bulletin - December '19

Martin Downs, Page 13

estate planning

Plan Your Estate To Help Seniors are often financially helping out their adult Instead of leaving money outright to the financially
children.
challenged child, consider a trust.
Financially Strapped Child So, how should parents prepare their estate plan to Trusts are not just for the super-rich. There are
help the cash strapped adult child? expenses to set up and manage the trust, but such costs
By Carrie Lavargna Consider how this financial mess happened. Were pale in comparison to the money wasted by a free-
Parents worry about the circumstances out of the child’s control? Does your spending child.
their children and it doesn’t adult child make poor money decisions or have a hard There are three parties to a trust. First, the grantor
stop when they grow up. time keeping a job? Was there a failed marriage or is this creates the trust and decides when, how and to whom
My dad used to say that as child subject to strong influence of a spouse? Are there funds are to be disbursed. Second, the trustee manages
I got older he still worried substance abuse problems? Or did this child simply never the assets and makes payments to the beneficiaries, who
about me, it only cost him save a dime and is now middle-aged with no retirement are the third party.
more. Probably some truth plan. Trust assets may be disbursed every month or year.
in that. You have a right to be worried about the situation. They may be focused on providing health care and living
Many parents have Asking these questions is not judging but trying to get expenses. Disbursements may also be distributed in
seen their adult children to the root of the problem to plan a solution. This family installments so that the financially challenged child can
work hard and not find the member may have wonderful personal attributes and be learn to manage money before receiving the next check.
financial success that they a loving, caring person. If the child has a drug or alcohol problem, you may
themselves had. There are fewer jobs with pensions, However, the child’s lack of money or lack of money choose against interval payments and withhold assets
and many young families barely make ends meet, are sense should be considered when planning your estate. until the problem is corrected. In the trust document you
challenged by the cost of college education for their You may want to provide assistance for your child’s can create a wait-and-see provision by giving the trustee
children and frankly, don’t have the discipline to save retirement and fear that a lump sum inheritance would flexibility to distribute the assets to the beneficiary when
for retirement. be blown in no time at all. behavior changes. You can instruct the trustee to cover
the cost of housing, health insurance and food directly.
The trust document can specify standards to be met before
the trust funds are distributed, such as requiring the
beneficiary to pass drug or alcohol testing or participate
in rehabilitation programs.
Who should be the trustee? You can choose a family
member, possibly another child, but consider that when
one child holds the purse strings for another, stress and
conflict arise.
These are hard issues to discuss, but you should feel
free to talk openly with your estate planning attorney.
Work through these issues and plan appropriately. Making
no decision may be the worst one.
This is an overview of the subject matter and not
intended as legal advice. Carrie Lavargna is an attorney
practicing law in Stuart, Florida. She is board certified in
real estate law by the Florida Supreme Court and focuses
her practice primarily in estate planning and real estate
matters.

Pet Matters

by Pat Deshong, President of Furry Friends
Adoption, Clinic & Ranch

"For the Love of Animals" features
real stories happening at Furry Friends
in Jupiter. We are The Humane Society
of Greater Jupiter/Tequesta and the
only no-kill shelter open to the public
in northern Palm Beach County. We’ve
been rescuing, rehabilitating, and re-
homing the homeless animals in our When considering adding a furry family member to your
community for more than 30 years. family, please visit our Palm City Ranch at 4841 S.W. Zarrella
Our not for profit 501c3 organization Street. All of our adoptable dogs and cats are now at our ranch
consists of our Jupiter based Adoption but by the time you are reading this article, we may very well have
Center, Veterinary Clinic (open to the public), Thrift Boutique, furry residents in our new Jupiter home at 100 Capital Street in
and Palm City Ranch. the Jupiter Commerce Park! Call us at 561-747-5311 ext. 2 for
information!
Blessings to you for your support and faith in us… all for the
First came JP, an elderly hound mix who had lived at Furry LOVE of animals!
Friends for many years. Annie fostered JP for the last 5 months
of his life, giving him daily beach time, his favorite foods, and
boatloads of snuggles. Then entered Stanley, a young pup born Patricia Deshong, President
with pancreatic issues that needed extra TLC. While in her foster Progress with our new
care, Stanley wormed his way into Annie’s heart and became her building. Please help
Furry Friends “foster failure.” us get to the finish line
Next was Comet, a puppy born with severe congenital issues. by donating today!
Annie did what many people would not do, tending daily to his Our clinic is now
chronic skin condition & open sores. She cradled him as he took open at 100 Capital
his last breaths, whispering in his ear that life across the Rainbow Street. Our Adoption
Bridge would be very different from what he had endured on earth. Center will be finished
Without missing a beat, Annie immediately stepped up to foster soon!!
Charlie, a small terrier mix who had been hit by a car and whose Our new home! If you would like to be a part of our new
owners had paid for his surgery. Sadly, he did not receive the beginning, please contact us. Like each nail, block, & tile, every
physical therapy he needed post surgery and he was surrendered donation, no matter how small, will help make our dream come
to Furry Friends, unable to walk. With Annie’s patience, Charlie true… All for the Love of Animals.
has made tremendous improvement. Annie says, “Charlie LOVES Please visit www.furryfriendsadoption.org or call
his wheels and is as fast as lightning.” With brother Stanley 561.747.5311 ext. 1 for more information. Ask for Pat Deshong,
and mother Annie, Charlie conquers the world with swimming President, or Curry Krasulak, Director of Development.
lessons, beach walks and meeting new furry friends. He’s quite
the outgoing pup who can now walk unassisted! This is what Furry Friends is all about…rescuing, rehabilitating,
Fosters like Annie are critical to Furry Friends. And our and giving homeless companion animals their best future… no
organization is blessed to have so many who heed the call to help matter how long it takes to find it. We invite you to come visit us!
those having the greatest need. There’s Wendy who has been Our website is www.furryfriendsadoption.org.
Furry Friends depends on the generous support from donors
fostering the tiniest of kittens for more than two years. She has like you. Without Furry Friends, the future of the many animals
never shied away from a challenge, be it ringworm, mange, or we save would be uncertain. Thank you for donating and helping
other conditions even more serious or contagious. Sleep? Many us continue our animal saving mission.
of our kitten fosters do not get it as they work around the clock to Ways to donate (tax ID #59-2111273):
care for their young charges. 1. Mail a check made payable to Furry Friends to 100 Capital
Furry Friends salutes our many fosters! We cannot do what Street, Jupiter, FL 33458.
we do without them! We challenge you to join their ranks and 2. Visit www.furryfriendsadoption.org
discover just how rewarding it can be to save a life. To learn how 3. Call us with your credit card information at 561.747.5311 ext. 3
you can foster, please visit www.furryfriendsadoption.org. “Your donation creates the possibilities to make miracles
happen for our Furry Friends”
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