008: Financial Planning for Families with Special Needs Individuals
Release Date: 05/15/2018
185: Are You Risking Everything? The Insurance Your Business Can't Operate Without
Absolute Trust Talk
Many business owners purchase insurance without truly understanding what they're buying or what critical coverage they might be missing. Host Kirsten Howe addresses this knowledge gap by welcoming Dean Myers, owner of Core Insurance Agency, to reveal the fundamental insurance coverage every business owner needs before opening their doors. Dean, who specializes in errors and omissions insurance for lawyers, accountants, doctors, and professional trustees, breaks down the three critical pillars of business insurance: workers' compensation, general liability, and property insurance. ...
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184: From One Direction to No Direction: What Liam Payne's Estate Teaches Us About Planning
Absolute Trust Talk
In this episode of Absolute Trust Talk, host Kirsten Howe examines the estate complications following One Direction member Liam Payne's tragic death in Argentina in fall 2024. At just 30 years old, Payne left behind a $32 million estate—but no will. His complex assets include performance income, solo artist earnings, brand deals, music publishing rights, and venture investments. Without estate planning, his 8-year-old son Bear becomes the sole intestate heir, inheriting the full amount at age 18. Kirsten analyzes the cascading problems: massive probate fees (at least $376,000 in...
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183: Beyond Borders: International Estate Planning Essentials for Families (Part 3)
Absolute Trust Talk
In this final installment of Absolute Trust Talk's international estate planning series, host Kirsten Howe concludes her conversation with estate planning specialist Janet Brewer, addressing one of the most common cross-border scenarios: U.S. citizens who own property abroad. Janet, with over 30 years of experience serving Silicon Valley's international clientele, explains why simply leaving foreign property to your US trust won't work, since most countries don't recognize trusts at all. This episode highlights the crucial distinction between countries that recognize trusts...
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182: Beyond Borders: International Estate Planning Essentials for Families (Part 2)
Absolute Trust Talk
In this second installment of Absolute Trust Talk's international estate planning series, host Kirsten Howe welcomes back estate planning specialist Janet Brewer to explore advanced strategies for families with cross-border connections. Building on their previous discussion of guardianship challenges, this episode focuses on critical tax considerations and financial hurdles faced by international families. Janet, a certified specialist with over 30 years of experience serving Silicon Valley clients, explains the unique tax opportunities available to visa holders with stock options and RSUs,...
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181: Beyond Borders: International Estate Planning Essentials for Families
Absolute Trust Talk
In this episode of Absolute Trust Talk, host Kirsten Howe welcomes estate planning specialist Janet Brewer to explore the unique challenges faced by immigrants and international families when planning for their future. Janet, with over 30 years of experience serving clients throughout Silicon Valley, brings her vast knowledge to address the specific concerns of non-resident aliens, visa holders, green card holders, and other international families with U.S.-based assets. As a member of the invitation-only Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), Janet regularly prepares estate plans...
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180: Divorce in Progress: Safeguarding Your Estate Plan Before It's Final (Part 2)
Absolute Trust Talk
In this episode of Absolute Trust Talk, host Kirsten Howe and associate attorney Jessica Colbert continue their discussion on estate planning during divorce proceedings with practical solutions. Following their previous episode on the potential problems that can arise if someone becomes incapacitated or dies during divorce, they now focus on preventative measures. The attorneys explain how to ensure your soon-to-be ex-spouse doesn't maintain control over your healthcare decisions or inherit your assets contrary to your wishes. They discuss the creation of new healthcare directives, powers of...
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179: Divorce in Progress: Safeguarding Your Estate Plan Before It's Final
Absolute Trust Talk
In this episode of Absolute Trust Talk, host Kirsten Howe and associate attorney Jessica Colbert discuss critical estate planning considerations during divorce proceedings. They explore what happens if someone becomes incapacitated or dies while their divorce is still pending, revealing potentially unwelcome consequences if proper planning isn't in place. The discussion highlights how existing estate plans typically name a spouse as the primary decision-maker and beneficiary—a designation most divorcing individuals would want to change immediately. Without written estate plans, the...
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178: 3 Critical Estate Planning Lessons from Richard Simmons' Legacy Battles
Absolute Trust Talk
In this episode of Absolute Trust Talk, host Kirsten Howe examines the estate complications following Richard Simmons' death in July 2023. She details the ongoing legal dispute between Simmons' brother Leonard (named trustee) and Teresa, his housekeeper of 30 years who briefly served as co-trustee before a contested resignation. The conflict centers around approximately $1 million in personal property—primarily jewelry—that Teresa allegedly took when evicted from Simmons' home. While Teresa claims Simmons gifted her the jewelry in 2014, Leonard argues documentation proves otherwise....
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177: Inside the Heated Padres Inheritance Feud: What It Teaches Us About Sound Estate Planning
Absolute Trust Talk
In this all-new episode of Absolute Trust Talk, Kirsten Howe and her associates, Jessica Colbert and Ariana Flynn, delve into the complex estate battle surrounding the late San Diego Padres owner, Peter Seidler. The MLB team finds itself at the center of a legal dispute as Seidler's wife, Sheel, contends with his brothers over control of the franchise. With allegations of breached trust, fraud, and self-dealing, the case highlights the intricacies of estate planning for high-net-worth individuals and the potential pitfalls of ambiguous or informal documentation. While largely speculation,...
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176: Behind the Headlines: Gene Hackman's Estate Plan and What We Can Learn
Absolute Trust Talk
In this episode of Absolute Trust Talk, Kirsten Howe, managing attorney at Absolute Trust Counsel, and associate attorney Jessica Colbert examine the estate of beloved actor Gene Hackman. They meticulously analyze the available court records from Santa Fe County, New Mexico, and contrast them with California's probate procedures. The attorneys skillfully debunk sensationalized headlines about Hackman's will, explaining the mechanics of pour-over wills and why media claims about his children being "cut out" are potentially misleading. While much of the discussion is speculation, they provide...
info_outlineIn this episode of Absolute Trust Talk, Kirsten welcomes special needs financial planning expert Jon Elfin into the studio. Jon has over 35 years of experience in the financial services industry and focuses on processes and expertise to help clients understand their options and more importantly take action when it comes to building and preserving wealth for families with special needs dependents.
Jon and Kirsten break down what exactly special needs planning encompasses and discuss the processes that Jon goes through with each of his clients. More importantly, Jon discusses a few of the biggest mistakes he sees when clients come into his practice and also highlights effective strategies that a special needs family can take now in securing the future of their dependents. As Jon is also a parent of a special needs child, throughout the interview he weaves in topics of transitional life experience from his own personal perspective.
Big Three From Episode #008:
- Start early
- Don’t be overwhelmed
- Utilize your resources!
Time-stamped Show Notes:
1:50 – What exactly is Special Needs Planning?
2:48 – How Jon got into Special Needs Planning
4:00 – The complexities of Special Needs Planning
7:00 – Jon highlights common mistakes he’s come across in his practice when working with clients
8:05 – Jon and Kirsten discuss a few of the biggest benefits/acronyms that people miss
10:42 – Kirsten discusses Special Needs Planning from the estate planning point of view and a special provision that should be put in all estate plans
11:37 – Jon addresses why ages 18 and 22 are important ages for special needs people
13:30 – Jon defines “transition class” and its extreme importance
15:35 – What a regional center is and how it helps special needs families plan the next step.
16:20 – Don’t leave all the money for a special needs family member to a sibling!
20:14 – A special needs person can save money in these accounts too – Big win for the disability community
25:15 – The other important strategy for special needs individuals according to Jon is life insurance
Episode #008 Freebie:
No matter where you are in your journey as a special needs family know that there are things that can be done to help build and protect the future of your special needs dependent. During this episode, Jon mentioned a few of the common mistakes well-intentioned special needs families make. To help educate listeners on what to look for he outlined and is exclusively sharing with us a few more! In addition, Jon is also offering a FREE 90-minute consultation. So if you’re a special needs parent or caretaker who is worried or doesn’t know where to start, call Jon. He will cover all of the basics and see if he can be of further service in making your special needs life transitions go as smoothly as possible.
Resources/Tools/Links mentioned in this episode:
Disability benefits 101 - https://ca.db101.org/