About 4 years ago I was tasked with helping my parents move their investments from one brokerage to the one I use. I was also tasked with making investment choices going forward.
During the transfers we were offered "Full Trading Authority" or a "Full POA". This was my first rodeo with this and I pushed for the more limited FTA option. HUGE FREAKING MISTAKE. Constant issues come up where the FTA limits how I can function on their behalf. For example, we want to do RMD's for the year. I can't even get to the information to determine the RMD. That requires the POA level of authority. So now I have to arrange a 3 party call because we are 1000 miles apart. You ever attempted that with tech challenged 90 and 86 year olds? Fun times. Go for the POA level from the start.

Now for the question. Reviewing their Will and related documents it has my middle initial as D. instead of the correct C. The Will and documents are from 2014. Is it imperative to have this corrected?

Also, their Will documents have a Durable POA but as I look at it I don't think it's what the Brokerage house would want. Appears to be more specific to Will related responsibilities if that makes any sense. Does that sound right?

Thanks in advance

IANAL.

Can you just get the online credentials from your parents and with their permission access everything? Access to all of their online accounts would allow you to monitor for fraudulent activity.

As an aside, be sure the beneficiary info on all of their accounts is up to date.

To dovetail with that, I am a huge proponent of using a trust rather than a will if their assets are substantial and/or if someone will be relying on those assets. e.g. my disabled sister was being supported by our father who funded her apartment. His will is still stalled 3 years in the court due to their sheer neglect (nobody is contesting anything and it is very simple). Instantly his assets became unavailable to support my sister until probate is resolved. A trust bypasses the court and disposes of their assets as they desire, but meanwhile they have full control and use of the assets while alive.

If they do have a trust, be sure it is properly and correctly identified as the beneficiary. e.g. if it has been updated with a new date or modified name, be sure any asset that goes to the trust is also updated to the exact correct identification.

Have you tried talking to the brokerage about upgrading your access? If you do a zoom call with your parents and the broker it might be a pretty easy fix. My mother, 91 yrs old, has done a number of these kinds of financial things on zoom. They ask her to hold up her drivers license to prove it is her.

As another aside, I discovered recently POAs become invalid when a person passes. The executor of the estate has control at that point, but paperwork needs to be completed to pay bills and such and it can take time.

Another option, at least in Iowa, is to add the beneficiary as co-owner on bank accounts and such. That way the access is maintained as the estate is processed.

quote:

Originally posted by bryan11:
As another aside, I discovered recently POAs become invalid when a person passes. The executor of the estate has control at that point, but paperwork needs to be completed to pay bills and such and it can take time.

Another option, at least in Iowa, is to add the beneficiary as co-owner on bank accounts and such. That way the access is maintained as the estate is processed.

This is correct the POA ends with the passing of the grantor.

Fly-Sigs comment to check beneficiary designation is spot on, you need to be sure it's the way you want it. Do not leave it to the estate, avoid probate by having a beneficiary be it you or a Trust. If you are the sole surviving heir, then making you the final beneficiary is easily accomplished. Avoid leaving it open where the finance company agreement takes control and it ends up held up in probate.

Estate - be sure the will is up to date, your parents wills are almost 10 years old, have them reviewed and up to date in case any laws in their state has changed, and get your name corrected, you don't want someone in the probate court asking you to validate your name, it could just be a affidavit of correct name, copies of DL, birth cert etc but why deal with it.

Trust- when you get the will updated it's also a good time to discuss a trust to see if that's a proper way to go for your parents assets.

Lot of people their age will move things into the name(s) of the people they want in advance so that it avoids probate, homes, cars, anything with a title.

You also want to be on their bank account, lock box, anything financial you need to be on the account if you want access...

Life Insurance - be sure beneficiary designations are done, see plenty where it's been left blank which means it can go to the estate, or, the pre-deceased spouse is left as a primary with no contingent, be sure you have a contingent... and never, ever leave life insurance to the estate or a minor...

quote:

Originally posted by Fly-Sig:
IANAL

The most unfortunate acronym

I'm not judging you

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:

quote:

Originally posted by Fly-Sig:
IANAL

The most unfortunate acronym

I'm not judging you

Chocolate milk on the Kindle stuff there..

I would go ahead and meet with an attorney while your parents still have the capacity to get their estate planning updated. You do not have to have a separate durable POA to handle investments, but in FL the powers must be specifically designated in the instrument.

While you are working on this and involved, get as much done as you can now to avoid the headache of a probate court having to sort it out later.

Use an actual estate planning attorney instead of DIY software, because there is no such thing as a one size fits all approach.

A few more thoughts. (and trying to think of a better acronym....)

Definitely get the will looked over to be sure it is up to date. Laws change and it can have a big impact. A missing sentence or phrase can mess things up in a lot of ways. Extra doubly true if there is any sort of special-needs trust.

Yes, get your name corrected. The court has zero desire to allow any inconsistency or vagueness. They will insist on all manor of official filings and documentation. This will cost you $$ and lots of time.

Safe deposit boxes are a bad idea. They are off limits when the owner dies, and only the executor can gain access. If their will is in the safe box, a court order is required to gain access.

The court will only accept an ink-signed will. No photocopies. If there is no ink-signed latest will, the court reverts to the most recent that is ink-signed. So, imagine the latest will is quite different than previous wills, but no ink-signed version can be found. Maybe an ex-spouse was written out of this version. But an older version does exist ink-signed. And it gives everything to the then-spouse who is now very much a hated ex-spouse. The court will give everything to that hated ex-spouse.

So be sure you know where the latest ink-signed will is, and that you can get to it when the time comes. Discuss with your estate atty what to do with older versions.

Almost everyone waits too long to put their parents under guardianship.

This can be one of the best things you can do for them.

It’s not just about mental acuity. It can be to protect them when they have vision/hearing problems as well - or even tech issues.

One more consideration: Medicaid. If a parent goes to a care facility, insurance such as Tricare may cover a few months but that's it. Monthly costs at these places can easily be $5000 to $15000 and need to be paid privately.

If one isn't able to pay privately, they may be transferred to Medicaid and any assets they owned for the past years (Iowa has a 7 year lookback) go to Medicaid first. This can be a home, car, retirement fund, etc. I hear trusts can be used to help prevent this situation.

quote:

Originally posted by bryan11:
One more consideration: Medicaid. If a parent goes to a care facility, insurance such as Tricare may cover a few months but that's it. Monthly costs at these places can easily be $5000 to $15000 and need to be paid privately.

If one isn't able to pay privately, they may be transferred to Medicaid and any assets they owned for the past years (Iowa has a 7 year lookback) go to Medicaid first. This can be a home, car, retirement fund, etc. I hear trusts can be used to help prevent this situation.

Yes, but there are very precise requirements. A special-needs trust can be created by them or someone else for their benefit. Very specific wording in the trust must be included to navigate the tax laws.

I used to think wills for normal people were simple and could be done by one of those software packages. But not any more! Except in cases with small estates (less than about $50k total value, depending on your state) and very simple instructions, a good estate attorney is needed.

One other thing on the estate planning suggestions - if they are reluctant and one of the stated reasons is the cost, offer to pay that as a gift if they'll take it. You net out the same over the long haul, and have an easier time with the administration to boot.

quote:

Originally posted by Powers77:

Now for the question. Reviewing their Will and related documents it has my middle initial as D. instead of the correct C. The Will and documents are from 2014. Is it imperative to have this corrected?

Also, their Will documents have a Durable POA but as I look at it I don't think it's what the Brokerage house would want. Appears to be more specific to Will related responsibilities if that makes any sense. Does that sound right?

Thanks in advance

Unknown as to how much a problem the wrong initial is. Ask a lawyer in the state where the will is to be probated.

Most institutions want you to use their own POA form, even if the other one is broad enough to cover it. Every try to get a bank to honor a POA they didn't bless? They generally won't.

quote:

Originally posted by Aglifter:
Almost everyone waits too long to put their parents under guardianship.

This can be one of the best things you can do for them.

It’s not just about mental acuity. It can be to protect them when they have vision/hearing problems as well - or even tech issues.

For the love of Almighty God, do NOT put your parents under a guardianship. At least in Florida, guardianships are monitored by the court, and there is an official appointed to keep an eye on you. There are also ongoing expenses to support this system.

Get an appropriate trust for your jurisdiction and tax position, and have yourself appointed as trustee. Also get a POA. If properly set up, the trust + POA gives you everything you need during their lives, and when they die, everything will be in the trust under your control.

Get a lawyer in their jurisdiction who knows their business.

Thank me later.

Am I the only one who initially interpreted the thread title as Palmetto State Armory on Point of Aim's...?

The financial aspect of POA has been discussed. Medical POA should be also addressed.

Find a good/competent attorney in the state where they live and let them give you advise.
These questions and the correct answers are state specific.
Don’t try to shortcut that correct way.
Spend the money, do it right.
It will be the least expensive and least troublesome in the end.

quote:

Now for the question. Reviewing their Will and related documents it has my middle initial as D. instead of the correct C. The Will and documents are from 2014. Is it imperative to have this corrected?

Absolutely, as quick as possible. No need for future problems, when you can fix it today.

Mrs. Mike already has full POA and our wills express what we want. My parents have added me to all their bank accounts in case of future problems….we figured it out when my grandma was murdered. Fortunately dad was on her bank account and it made things a little easier.

Given ArtieS’ comment about guardianship in FL - the most useful advice is Hiring a local expert lawyer.

I’ve never done wills and trust work, but it was hammered into us by a dean who specialized in it, that it was something to do, in TX, 20 or so years ago, for the elderly.

To Aglifter's point, words can have different definitions in different jurisdictions. Guardianships are hassle-filled and dangerous (you can lose your guardian to the court). In Texas, they may be fine.

You can't know without dealing with an experienced lawyer in your parent's jurisdiction.

Good luck, and don't wait.