Every dollar you make, every asset you possess is at risk in this depressed economy. Creditors, litigators and other vultures are lying in wait, looking to pounce on unprotected assets. Anyone with an income wears a bulls eye on their back.The only certain way to protect your assets from these leaches is to setup a comprehensive asset protection plan.30% of all devastating law suits can be avoided with an asset protection plan. There are several simple things a person can do to protect his or her assets and anyone can utilize any or all of the following techniques.

The first thing you should do is remove your name from ownership of your assets, while maintaining control of those assets. You want to be rich but look poor.

Created a limited liability company (LLC) will accomplish this goal. A personal creditor cannot touch the shares of an LLC. Your LLC shares are protected from creditor liens. Judgment holders are limited to merely owning a charging order against distributions made by the LLC.The creditors won’t be able to grab any of the LLCs assets. They can’t even touch your salary (without and order of garnishment) , nor any of the assets bought or sold through the LLC. As long as you avoid any distributions, your assets are completely shielded.

Another way to beat the vampires is through an irrevocable trust. With an irrevocable trust, you technically no longer own the assets and therefore no debts can be levied against them. Through an irrevocable trust you can retain control,while transferring legal ownership to anyone you choose. In addition, the content of the trust do not need to be listed in an asset sheet, since they are no longer your assets. While shares of an LLC must still be listed on an asset sheet, those shares are fully protected.

Another method is to convert your assets to other creditor-exempt vehicles, such as annuities, IRAs homestead properties, pension plans and life insurance policies. Homestead property, annuities, IRAs, pension plans and life insurance policies are the most common creditor-exempt entities.

For Florida residents, the most convenient vehicle of asset protection is through the Florida Homestead statute, since any value added to a Florida homestead is protected. The only creditors that are able to attach a lien to your homestead property are those creditors that hold direct liens resulting from work done on your property, or the property itself.

The three most common liens of this type are mortgage liens, Federal tax liens, Association liens, and mechanic’s liens (money owed to someone you hired to do work on your property).

The cash value of an life insurance policy of a Florida resident is also immune to creditor claims as long as the death benefit passes to a beneficiary and not the decedent’s estate.

The proceeds of an annuity contract issued to a resident of Florida are also not subject to the claims of creditors.

Yet another technique is to make your assets less attractive to parasites.

We are able to do this through “equity stripping”. By placing liens on assets makes them appear more like a liability. You don’t actually have to go to a bank and take out a loan. Equity stripping doesn’t have to cost you any additional money. You can simply have one of your out-of-state LLCs create a Note for more than your property is worth. When a creditor or litigator views your assets, they will see and “under water” property, one that is buried by a loan worth more than the asset itself.

Fifty million law suits are filed each year. Statistically, each of us will be sued five times during our life-time. An asset protection plan can make the difference between brushing them off or being crippled by them. For the sake of your family and your peace of mind, the time to plan is now.

For more information about asset protection techniques, please contact the Florida asset protection attorneys of  Wild Felice & Pardo at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com . Let us protect what you value most.

Having a professional license is like having a sign on your back saying: “Please Sue Me.” Common belief is that a professional is well-to-do and highly insured, and can provide an easy pay day when the target of a lawsuit.In this economy, the problem of frivolous lawsuits has grown even worse. There are approximately 50 million lawsuits are filed every year. For everyone who earns a buck, there’s someone out there plotting to take it away. The wise professional implements a comprehensive asset protection plan.

Your first step is to choose the right form of business entity. You should always choose one that limits your personal exposure, insuring that, should you lose a professional lawsuit, it should not impact your personal life and assets, affecting your life and family. A Limited Liability Company (LLC) will very effectively shield your personal assets from the potential liabilities of your professional practice. A professional corporation (PC) or professional association (PA) will also offer protection from the debts of your practice. It will also protect you from errors made by any of your employees, however it will not personally protect you if you are sued personally for your own malpractice.

A limited liability partnership (LLP) is a excellent vehicle for professionals who wish to join together for business while separating their personal assets from professional liability. While an LLP will protect you from the mistakes of your partners, it will not shield you from the mistakes you make personally.

A general partnership is ill-advised as it is very high risk when running a professional practice. It opens you up to liability from the actions of any of your partners.

Probably, the most important step you can take as a professional looking to insulate your personal assets from liability arising from your practice, is to conduct a risk management and liability audit.

Your business structure, policies, procedures, operations and contracts all need to all be reviewed in order to create an airtight asset protection plan. As your asset protection attorney, my job is to identify problems before they turn into lawsuits. The earlier we find a weakness in your armor, the more successful we will be in shielding you from any loss. If you wait until you are sued to form your asset protection strategy, it will be too late.

For more information on how to shield your personal life from the risk and liability of your professional practice and to schedule a free consultation, please contact the asset protection and estate planning attorneys of Wild Felice & Pardo, PA at 954-944-2855 or info@wfplaw.com. Let us protect what you value most.

There are three ways in which you can own assets at the time of your death: individually (in your own name), jointly (along with at least one other person), or by contract (naming an ultimate beneficiary).  Depending on what your goals are during life and after death, the way you title your assets could be the difference between financial wealth and financial hardship for your children and/or beneficiaries.

Individual Title

Everything that you own in your own name at the time you die must be probated.  This includes your home, any rental properties, any life insurance policies, jewelry, bank accounts, stocks, cars, baseball cards, you name it, and it’s included.  Probate should be avoided at all costs.  The probate process is extremely costly, as it usually costs your heirs between 4 and 7 percent of the entire estate.  The probate process is extremely time consuming, as it may take years to complete and deprive your family of the enjoyment of the assets you left to them.  The probate process is public record which means that anyone with a computer can view all of your most personal decisions and the embarrassing infighting that might have arisen out of those divisions.

Beyond the perils of probate, any assets that are individually owned may be taken from you through law suits, creditors, or divorce.  Assets titled in your own name are not protected and can be easily lost.  These assets are also added to your total estate and taxed at whatever the estate tax level is that year.  In 2011, the estate tax will be 55 percent.  That 55 percent is in addition to the 20 to 35 percent in income tax that you have been paying during your entire life.  Titling assets in your own name is very dangerous and unwise.

Joint Title

Having your assets titled jointly at the time of your death means that the items will pass to the person that shared title with you automatically at the time of your death.  The benefit of this form of title is that the asset titled jointly does not need to be probated and there can be no fight over the correct distribution or devise of the asset.  However, the negatives of joint titling far outweigh the positives.  Having your assets titled jointly may lead to the loss of certain valuable tax savings at the time of your death.  Joint titling also forfeits any future devise of your assets.  If you wished for any of your children or other relatives to one day enjoy your property, they will be unable to since you retained no ownership of the property and forfeited your right to gift it to your beneficiaries after your death.

Another disadvantage to the joint titling of assets is that you might get stuck with any debt arising from the property if you are the last person standing.  Any mortgage on real property or other debt arising out of the property will now fall on you to cover.  Further, a jointly titled asset restricts how you can use the property during your life.  If you have equal ownership stake, you cannot sell or transfer the property without unanimous consent from all parties sharing ownership.  This could lead to conflict and loss of profit.  Titling assets jointly is not ideal.

Title By Contract

Titling your assets by contract is a much safer way to control who ultimately gets your assets.  Usually, titling by contract is accomplished by naming a beneficiary.  Almost any monetary account can have a beneficiary named.  Bank accounts, retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, and life insurance policies all have remainder beneficiary options.  By naming your beneficiary during life, you can control who gets the proceeds from the account upon your death.  The benefit of this form of title is that there can be no discussion about your true intentions; there can be no fighting between your beneficiaries.  While you may not have to worry about loss of control of assets titled by contract while you are alive, you are forfeiting a lot at the time of your death.

Any assets owned in your name at the time of your death will be added to the value of your estate for the purposes of calculating your estate tax amount.  This includes life insurance, annuities, retirement accounts and any other asset titled by contract.  Another negative to titling by contract is that you are offering no protection to your beneficiaries.  As soon as the contract is realized at the time of your death, the money is distributed outright to your beneficiaries and can be taken from them by litigants, creditors, or divorce.  Titling by contract provides no asset protection.

Conclusion

The only way to truly protect your assets during life, control who gets them when you die, and protect your beneficiaries long after you are gone is to title your assets in trust for your beneficiaries.  There are major flaws in titling your assets individually, jointly, or by contract.  For more information on how to protect your assets during life and long after you are gone, please contact the asset protection and estate planning experts at the law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com.  Let us protect what you value most.

Even with story after story about people losing everything, Fort Lauderdale residents are still failing to plan for the protection of their assets.  It is imperative that you retain a Fort Lauderdale estate planning attorney to work with you on your asset protection plan, but in the meantime you should at least follow the eight steps below and assure that your family and your assets have some basic form of protection.

Step 1 – Designate a financial power of attorney.

A financial power of attorney acts as an agent and handles your financial affairs if and when you become incapacitated.  This person can pay your bills, file your taxes, and manage important accounts, such as investment, retirement, and life insurance.  If you fail to formally name a financial power of attorney in place, your family would have to get court permission to step in which will cost them precious time and money.

Step 2 – Designate a health care surrogate.

A health care surrogate is fundamentally a power of attorney for your personal heath and well being.  This person will make health care decisions for you when you are unable to do so and will make certain that your living will is executed properly, so that the end-of-life measures that you choose are carried out as you requested.  At the same time that you are designating your health care surrogate, you should also be preparing and signing your living will.

Step 3 – Calculate your net worth.

Start by listing all of your assets and their current market value.  Then, make a separate list of any major outstanding liabilities such as the balance on your mortgage, credit cards, or car loans.  Subtract the total liabilities from the total assets and you will have your net worth.  Keep this figure handy when speaking with your estate planning attorney and discussing your asset protection plan.

Step 4 – Review your beneficiaries.

Be certain that you review the beneficiary forms on file for all of your bank accounts, retirement accounts, and life insurance policies.  These forms will determine who inherits most of your assets.  If your spouse is listed as the beneficiary on any of these accounts, you should list your children as contingent beneficiaries in case anything should happen to your spouse.

Step 5 – Write a will, or update the one you have.

If you don’t have a will, you will have no control over the way your assets are divided after you are gone.  Without a formal estate plan, the government, the probate attorney, and the funeral home will divide your money up and there will be little left for your family and friends.  If you have a basic will, but you have had a major life change since drafting it (such as marriage, divorce, birth of a child, or death of an immediate family member), the dividing up of your estate could get very messy.  To protect the future wealth of your family further, you should talk to your estate planning attorney about the implementation of various trusts and tax shelters that may be available to you.

Step 6 – Plan for state estate taxes.

In 2011, there is a chance that your estate could be doubly taxed.  The federal estate tax is scheduled to completely disappear in 2010, but at that time the provisions of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act will sunset and the estate tax, along with the Florida estate tax, will come back on January 1, 2011.  The year 2010 will be an “uncapped” year in that the EGTRRA will no longer offer protection to those individuals with a net worth of under $1 million.

Step 7 – Title your assets correctly.

Failing to title your assets correctly may defeat any specific intentions you have when forming your asset protection plan.  If you are uncertain of how to title your assets in a way to guarantee your desired result, you should contact your estate planning attorney and request a consultation.

Step 8 – Be generous.

Any person can donate up to $13,000 per year in cash, stock, or other property to any other person or entity without worrying about the implications of any gift or estate taxes.  An individual is also permitted to pay any other individual’s college or private school tuition, provided that the check is sent directly to the school.  The same is true for medical expenses, as long as the check is sent directly to the health care provider.  These donations are in addition to the $13,000 yearly donation.  Taxpayers also have the opportunity to donate up to $1 million in a single lifetime donation and receive a one-time gift tax exclusion.

While these eight steps will provide you with some very basic asset protection, for a true and complete asset protection plan, please contact your Fort Lauderdale asset protection firm and let us work together to create a plan for your future and the financial future of your family for generations to come.

Our Fort Lauderdale law firm specializes in asset protection.  For every dollar, asset, and achievement earned by an individual, there are dozens of possible creditors, scam artists, and taxes trying to take them away.  We use a combination of estate planning, real estate law, family law, and corporate formation in order to preserve our clients’ assets during their lives and for generations to come. For more information, please contact the Fort Lauderdale asset protection law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com.