Category: Wisdoms

  • New Law for Life

    We all have choices to make in our lives, and if we are thoughtful about the opportunities and problems we face, some of our choices can be uplifting for our families and communities. The same can be said about our local institutions Organ Transplant Legislation Recently the Hawai‘i legislation was passed to allow organ transplantation…

  • What’s in the Health Care Law for You – Today

    Many families across Hawai‘i already know how the new health care law, the Affordable Care Act, is helping them. They’ve been able to maintain health care coverage for their college-age children, or buy health insurance after being previously labeled “uninsurable.” Many more have obtained discounts on expensive prescription drugs. Still, you may be wondering, What’s…

  • The Dollar is Up? The Dollar is Down?

    What does this all mean? You hear it regularly in the news: “The dollar rose today against other major currencies,” or “The dollar lost ground today on foreign exchange markets.” Just like stocks or bonds, currency’s value can fluctuate in comparison to each other on a daily basis. For example, at the start of 2011,…

  • Legal: Transfer Tax Ideas for 2012

    This year, many of us will be focusing on two things - the shrinking federal estate and gift tax “coupon” and the radical jump in transfer tax rates. The “coupon” is the amount that the Internal Revenue Code allows you to give away without having to pay gift taxes during your lifetime or estate taxes after you…

  • Legal: Make It Personal

    In planning our estate, we often spend much of our energy on deciding how to distribute the home and the cash, and we often overlook the personal items. In my practice, I see families distributing large sums of money and real estate rather smoothly. Then, when it comes to personal property, family conflict arises. From…

  • Be An Aware Consumer – Avoid Being Scammed

    It’s no secret that con-artists go where the money is. That means that schemers and scammers target citizens who are retired or who are about to retire who have been accumulating money through their retirement plans, real-estate and their personal bank accounts. The truth is that we are all at risk. Nevertheless, you can help…

  • Financial: Time For You To Refinance?

    According to research done by Freddie Mac, the average rate on a 30-year mortgage in the U.S. dropped below 4% for the first time ever in 2011. Rates on shorter-term, 15-year mortgages are even lower. For some, this creates a great opportunity to refinance the mortgage. But it’s not the right decision for everyone. Here…

  • Financial: Uplifting Choices

    Getting Your Plan in Order Perhaps you’ve asked yourself questions like, “How can I plan? We just sold our home and bought a retirement condo. Our older child just moved across the country and our younger child will be getting married later this year. With so much change, how can we make plans?” Life Changes…

  • New and Powerful Estate Planning Tool: the Hawai‘i Asset Protection Trust (APT)

    Two years ago, Hawai‘i joined Delaware, Nevada and 11 other states in validating self-settled spendthrift trusts. What this means is that you can now create a trust for yourself that will protect your assets from your own creditors. This is a huge departure from prior law, which expressly prohibited such trusts. For convenience, we will…

  • Uplifting Choices

    For many people end-of-year tax planning is a regular part of their lives. Given the com-plications that our tax system can engender, it is no wonder that taxes often impact personal goals and desires, especially during the holiday season when families are focused on relationships and gift giving. However, it is possible to use tax-favored…

  • Stay Uplifted Amid Economic Downturns

    Investors are being forced to cope with what many perceive as unprecedented circumstances in the economic and political environment. At the same time that the U.S. economic recovery appears to be slowing, Standard & Poor downgrades the U.S. credit rating on debt issued by the U.S. Treasury. Confidence that government policymakers can do anything significant…

  • Charity Scams Target Seniors Heavily During the Holiday’s

    Donating money to charity is one of the most selfless things a person can do. Unfortunately, criminals can easily prey on these selfless acts, using a person’s desire to help the less fortunate for their own 
personal gain. Seniors should be especially mindful of fraud schemes during the holidays. The FBI notes that seniors are…