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New Medicaid laws coming: Joshua Becker quoted in State-Journal Register today

On the front page of the Springfield State-Journal Register this morning (article not online yet but will be later I’m sure), there is an article about the new Medicaid law changes and how they will impact families.  Joshua was quoted several times in the article and a big illustration summary of the law [...]

Should you care about the 2011 estate tax changes?

Estate tax changes coming in 2011. Will your family be ready?

Losing a Loved One: Why hire an attorney? 5 reasons

After losing a loved one, sometimes the question is “do I need to hire an attorney?”   Maybe a better question is “should I?”  How would you benefit, as an executor or trustee?  How would your family benefit?  Here are some reasons to hire an attorney to assist with the legal and financial details after a [...]

Sweaters in the Suitcase – and your living trust document

Drafting thorough living trusts requires planning for contingencies and flexibility.

The Consumer’s Guide to Medicaid: 2010

Check out Joshua Becker’s informative, 4 page handbook outlining issues you need to know about qualifying for Medicaid.
Do you have a family member facing a nursing home in the near future?  If so, you urgently need to download and read this report.
CLICK FOR IMMEDIATE DOWNLOAD
The Consumer’s Guide to Medicaid:2010
Check out the current schedule [...]

Long-term Care Essentials Workshop

Long Term Care Essentials Workshop. Nursing home, asset protection, Medicaid

Contain Yourself: Fool Proof Solution to Getting Organized

Why is getting organized so much fun?  Well, I should rephrase that.  Getting organized is a lot of work.  But BEING organized is fun.  A while back Michelle and I went to the Container Store in St. Louis.  Who would think there is a store with nothing but containers for storing things?  And it’s fun [...]

Walls coming down at Edwards Group

What has been going on at Edwards Group LLC?   With the addition of Joshua Becker and Laura Peffley, we ran out of space.  So what to do?   Knock down walls.
After (or I should probably say “during”)
Before
Dave’s office – before and after
Now a glimpse of my new office.

Keeping the Family Farm in the Family

[originally appeared in the Prairie Farmer magazine - reprinted with author's permission]
“We worked hard to pay for and build up the farm to what it’s worth today.  We couldn’t have done it without the help of our son (or daughter).   As we do our estate planning, how can we be fair to all [...]

And the winner is…

Congratulations to the Pecori-Robinson family of Springfield!! They were the lucky winners of the Edwards Group Kids Guardianship Kit drawing for two season passes to Knights Action Park. The dad, Greg, is a member of the Illinois State Police S.W.A.T. team (Yay for our community heroes!), and mom, Gina, loves staying at home with her [...]

Charitable Giving For Regular People

Do you think of yourself as rich? Hopefully you do, but mostly in ways that don’t show up on a tax return. Are you rich in the things that really matter – loving family, good friends, your faith, serving others? Whether or not you think of yourself as a wealthy person, you can take advantage of [...]

Saving the Family Farm

Family farms.  Effectively planning to protect the family farm requires us to consider at least two types of planning.  And the 2 types involve 2 different definitions of “save”.
1. Does it mean to transfer the farm and protect it from nursing home costs, estate taxes, or other risks that could cause the property to be [...]

Charitable Giving – Do It Wisely and Use Uncle Sam’s Money

As you work on your estate plan, don’t forget to consider charitable giving.  Here are some basic questions to ask yourself:

If I plan to give to charity at death, have I considered just giving during my life instead? Give now, enjoy an income tax deduction and also enjoy seeing the money help others.  Plus, you [...]

Preparing For the School Bus Accident

If you attend a workshop or meet with me individually, you will probably hear about the “school bus trust”. What is it?

What is probate and why do people want to avoid it?

You may have heard people discuss probate and how horrible it is. But what in the world is probate? And why do people want to avoid it?