Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Wills, Estates, and Probate Lawyer, Pecori & Pecori, Elder Law, and Probate Attorneys

Estate Planning

When is the last time that you reviewed your estate planning documents? Don't have an estate plan? You certainly should. For most people the basic components of an estate plan are a Will, a Power of Attorney, and a Healthcare Power of Attorney and Living Will.  They are simply defined as follows:

Will: an instrument by which a person makes a distribution of their property to take effect after their death.

Power of Attorney: an instrument authorizing another to act as one's agent. The agent is "attorney in fact" for the principal until  their power is revoked or the principal dies. Such power may be general or specialized, such as below.

Healthcare Power of Attorney: a specialized power of attorney granting the agent power to make healthcare and medical decisions for the principal. It is valid until revoked or upon the death of the principal.

Living Will: an instrument by which a person may indicate his/her preferences regarding end of life care and treatment.

Trust: any arrangement whereby property is transferred with intention that it be administered by a trustee for another's benefit.  Trusts are best ultilized by those with high-value estates or those with special needs.

Your estate planning documents are your opportunity to ensure that your assets pass to the people of your choice and that your wishes are followed should you become incapacitated. If you are the parent of minor children it is even more important that you have an estate plan naming the guardian of your choice for your children.

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Pennsylvania Estate Planning myths:

1. A Trust will allow me to avoid all inheritance taxes.
        Fact: with proper planning a trust may help avoid federal estate taxation but  Pennsylvania inheritance tax will still be due.      

2. A Trust will will allow me to avoid the probate process.
        Fact: while it is true that a trust will avoid probate, most confuse "probate" with "taxation". As indicated above a trust will not avoid all inheritance taxes.

3. If I deed my house to my child for $1, he/she will not have to pay inheritance tax on it.
        Fact: If you survive a year after the transaction that may be true.  If you do not, it will be fully taxed. Such transactions, however create serious capital gains tax and ownership issues that most people do not consider. 

4. If I give away all of my property, I can get medicaid to pay for any nursing home care that I may need.
        Fact: Medicaid now has a a 60 month look back provision.  If you have "gifted" assests during the 60 months prior to your appplication for benefits, they will be used to determine your current eligibility.  If you have gifted too much you will not be eligible.  Contact a lawyer to determine your eligibility.


There is much dis-information when it comes to estate planning.  Don't be misled by gimmick trusts or rely on sofware to create your estate plan.

Contact us today to create the plan that best meets your needs or let us review your existing documents to be sure that they are still valid.
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Probate

Probate is the process by which an "estate" is distributed to heirs of a deceased.  It involves the appointment of an executor or administrator, the collection of assets and debts, the filing of an inhertiance tax return  and the distribution of assets under Court supervision.  Dealing with the probate process while grieving can be a trying experience.

At Pecori & Pecori we have guided thousand of estates through the probate process.  It is our goal to make what can be a confusing process as simple and stress-free as possible.

Dual State Licensed, we can act as your attorney in both West Virginia and Pennsylvania.We generally serve the following cities and areas: (West Virginia) Wheeling, Bethlehem, Weirton, Morgantown, Triadelphia, Charleston, Moundsville, Valley Grove, Morgantown, McMechen, Hancock County, Glendale, Brooke County, Marshall County, Follansbee, Chester, Ohio County,  Newell, Wellsburg; (Pennsylvania) Pittsburgh, Robinson Township, West View, Cranberry Township, Kennedy Township, Monroeville, Bellevue, McKees Rocks, Homestead, Coraopolis, McKeesport, Moon Township, Mount Lebanon, Oakdale, Wexford, Crafton, Greentree, Mercer, New Castle, Meadville and Imperial.



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