Your 401(k) doesn’t just disappear when you die. Here’s how it’s transferred, who gets it, the tax impact, and why beneficiary updates matter more than you think.

Parents who have spent a lifetime saving often want a simple way to help a daughter pay bills, avoid court delays, and ...

Elder law attorney Harry Margolis explains why beneficiary designations don’t protect assets and where Medicaid estate ...

If you die without naming a beneficiary for your 401(k) account, the rules for your retirement plan will likely require that funds in the account be considered part of your estate and have to go ...

A newly acquired individual retirement account (IRA) is good financial news for the recipient, but clients may need help unraveling the host of rules and requirements regulating how and when ...

Adam Hayes, Ph.D., CFA, is a financial writer with 15+ years Wall Street experience as a derivatives trader. Besides his extensive derivative trading expertise, Adam is an expert in economics and ...

Some financial products like life insurance or tax-advantaged retirement accounts require you to name one or more beneficiaries. However, that’s not the case with many assets. For instance, you can ...

We pay good money to estate-planning attorneys to draft trusts and wills. We deliberate over which loved ones are best suited to be guardians for minor children in case of catastrophe. We have ...

You can create a spendthrift trust with estate planning software, but using an advisor or attorney might be safer. Many, or all, of the products featured on this page are from our advertising partners ...

Naming a beneficiary is an essential step in estate planning that allows individuals to determine how their assets will be distributed in the event of their death. By understanding the different types ...

My husband passed away in June 2025. I was unaware that he had several IRAs (worth a few thousand dollars). When I found the paperwork, I discovered that his son was named as the beneficiary. I ...