Wyomissing Pennsylvania Legal Blog

After a loved one dies in Pennsylvania, it is necessary for you as the surviving family members to address many important legal matters, such as handling any debts that the deceased has left behind. Part of the purpose of the probate process is to settle any outstanding debts. We at Huckabee, Weiler & Levengood know that it is difficult for you to face these practical matters in the midst of your grief. It may help if you understand how the probate process pertains to the settlement of your loved one's outstanding debts.

If your loved one leaves behind outstanding debts, such as credit card balances, the appointed administrator or representative of your loved one's estate will apply assets from the estate in order to settle the accounts. The probate process begins with a petition, that is, a request to open the estate. The administrator notifies known parties with a possible interest in the estate by sending a Notice of Administration. In order to inform interested parties who may be unknown to the representative, a local newspaper publishes a Notice of Creditors.

For all of the plans you make and the precautionary measures that you take throughout your life, there are two things you simply cannot escape from: death and taxes. Many in Wyomissing might tell you that the two go hand-in-hand. Indeed, several of those that come to see us here at Huckabee, Weiler & Levengood, P.C. are concerned that much of their estates will go towards paying estate taxes (leaving little to actually go to their beneficiaries). While it is true that there in an estate tax, you should not that there are ways to avoid having to pay it. 

First and foremost, however, you should know whether or not you will even be required to. Per Forbes Magazine, the estate tax threshold for 2018 is $5.6 million per individual. What this means is that if the taxable portion of your estate is not above that amount, you (or more correctly, your beneficiaries) are exempt from having to pay federal estate taxes. 

As someone currently making your way through a Pennsylvania divorce, you are probably experiencing considerable upheaval in your life, and your separation may affect everything from where you live to how often you see your children. While there are numerous matters you and your soon-to-be-former spouse will need to work through, one of the more significant matters you will need to address will involve what is going to happen to your shared home.

According to Nerdwallet, divorcing couples who own their homes have several options at their disposal in terms of dividing up their home’s equity. The first involves simply selling your shared home and dividing the proceeds from the sale between the two of you. A second possible option of dividing home equity involves either you or your former partner keeping the home and refinancing the mortgage to remove the other party’s name.

If you are getting a divorce in Pennsylvania, one of the most trying parts of the process is dealing with your marital assets. You will need to split them between you and your spouse. If you fail to come to an agreement, the court will divide your assets. While many times, the process goes smoothly, there are sometimes when a spouse tries to hide assets. Knowing the signs of this beforehand can help you to uncover if your spouse is trying to hide away money so you do not get your fair share.

One sign you may notice, according to Forbes, is the transfer of assets. This is often done discreetly and you may have to investigate to discover what is happening. Another sign is an increase is spending or expenses. A bill can easily be altered and the extra money stashed away.