Estate Planning Guide
Estate planning protects your family, avoids probate, and ensures your assets go where you intend. Our guides cover wills, living trusts, powers of attorney, beneficiary designations, and Maryland estate taxes, reviewed by a CFP professional serving Forest Hill and the Baltimore metro area.
Estate planning is the legal and financial process of arranging how your assets will be distributed and your affairs managed if you die or become incapacitated. It typically involves a will or living trust to direct asset distribution, powers of attorney for financial and healthcare decisions, beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and insurance, and strategies to reduce or defer estate taxes and probate costs for your heirs.
A complete estate plan answers two questions: what happens to your assets at death, and who steps in if you cannot decide while you are alive. This guide covers the five documents every adult should have, Maryland's two-tax system, the beneficiary-form override, and the R.U.D.D.E.R. Method Jeff uses to keep plans current.
Read the complete guide →The major areas within estate planning, each with its own guide and supporting articles.
Donor-advised fund, private foundation, or QCD: which giving strategy fits me? Last reviewed: July 2026 The donor advised fund vs foundation decision usually comes down to three things: how much control you want over the money after it leaves your hands, how much you plan to give, and whether you're old enough to give straight from an IRA. For most ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
What is an ILIT, and how does it keep life insurance out of my estate? Last reviewed: July 2026 An irrevocable life insurance trust (ILIT) is a separate legal entity you create to own your life insurance policy so the death benefit passes to your heirs without being counted in your taxable estate. When the policy is properly owned by ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
What is a SLAT, and how does spousal gifting work? Last reviewed: July 2026 A spousal lifetime access trust (SLAT) is an irrevocable trust that one spouse creates and funds for the benefit of the other, moving assets out of the taxable estate while preserving indirect access through the beneficiary spouse. The donor spouse gives up direct control of the ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
How Does the Medicaid Look-Back Period Work for Long-Term Care? Last reviewed: July 2026 The Medicaid look-back period is the 60-month window state Medicaid agencies review when you apply for long-term care benefits, examining every asset transfer, gift, or below-market sale during those five years. Any uncompensated transfer found inside that window can trigger a penalty period during which Medicaid ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
What is a special needs trust, and how does it protect my child's benefits? Last reviewed: July 2026 A special needs trust is a legal arrangement that holds assets for a disabled beneficiary without counting those assets toward eligibility limits for SSI, Medicaid, and other means-tested programs. The trust pays for goods and services that improve quality of life beyond ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
Blended Family Estate Planning: How It Really Works Last reviewed: July 2026 Blended family estate planning is the work of writing one estate plan that protects three groups whose interests rarely line up: your new spouse, your biological children from a prior marriage, and any stepchildren you've raised as your own. The default tools (a basic will, joint accounts, "I ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
What is the difference between a revocable and irrevocable trust? Last reviewed: July 2026 The core difference is control versus protection: a revocable trust can be changed or dissolved at any time and keeps you in full control, while an irrevocable trust generally cannot be changed once funded and requires you to give up ownership in exchange for asset protection ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
Should I Get a Trust or Is a Will Enough? Last reviewed: July 2026 A will is enough for most people with straightforward finances and no minor children left to chance. A revocable living trust becomes worth the cost when you own real estate in more than one state, value privacy, want to plan for incapacity, or hold enough wealth ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
Does the $15M Estate Planning Exemption Mean You Can Stop Planning? Last reviewed: July 2026 The $15 million federal estate planning exemption is now permanent, and that is exactly why estate planning matters more, not less. For 2026, each individual can shield up to $15 million from federal estate tax, or $30 million for a married couple, under the One ... <div><a href="https://chesapeakefp.com/perspectives/estate-planning/" class="more-link">Read More</a></div>
Every article in the estate planning pillar, covering wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and tax strategies.
A revocable living trust holds your assets during your lifetime and distributes them according to your instructions after death, without going through probate court. A will is still needed alongside a trust to catch any assets not transferred into it.
Probate is the court-supervised process of validating a will and distributing a deceased person's estate. It can take months to years, is a public record, and often incurs legal fees of 2 to 5 percent of the estate's gross value.
In 2026, the federal estate tax exemption is $13.99 million per individual. Maryland imposes its own estate tax with a $5 million exemption, making state-level planning important for Maryland residents.
Beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance, and annuities override your will and pass directly to the named person outside probate. Failing to update them after a divorce, remarriage, or death of a beneficiary is one of the most common estate planning errors.
A power of attorney for finances authorizes a person to manage financial decisions on your behalf if you become incapacitated. A healthcare power of attorney designates someone to make medical decisions. Without these documents, a court may need to appoint a guardian.
The annual gift tax exclusion in 2026 is $19,000 per recipient. You can give that amount to any number of people each year with no gift tax return required and no impact on your lifetime exemption.
Managing Partner of Chesapeake Financial Planners in Forest Hill, Maryland, serving families and business owners across Harford County and the Baltimore metro area.
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