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Tipflation and our updated 2025 holiday tipping guide

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Winston Churchill:  We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give

Tipflation

Have we overdone it?  Do you think that tipping became overdone in the Pandemic?  Many today are tired of “tipflation” and believe tipping has taken over every service, including fast food, coffee shops, even retail and even medial offices. 

The tipping culture in the US originates in part from employers being allowed to pay low wages leaving some workers to rely on tips to be able to pay their bills.  In the 1960s, Congress allowed employers a “credit” for tips so they could pay workers less than the minimum wage under the theory that the workers received additional compensation from customer tips.  This is especially true for restaurants, where workers rely on tips to survive.   

But the theory does not necessarily apply to other workers.  And where tips apply, what you give should reflect the quality of service provided; it should not be obligatory. 

You may believe employers should pay more, but sometimes you are the one in that role, paying workers who rely on the tips.  Other times, you may find a service charge already added so be careful not to also give a tip. 

Update for holiday tipping

With this background on tipping in our country, we now turn to tipping for the holidays: This remains a time to say that special “thank you” to those who help get us and our families through each day, often throughout the whole year.  These tips should be “from the heart,” as a symbol of gratitude, rather than being expected. 

When you tip, please be mindful that the message you intend may not always be obvious. Your giving should show appreciation and respect.  Sometimes a smile, a kind word or even a note can really make someone’s day and have more lasting meaning than a Starbucks gift card.  Also be aware of any local customs to avoid anything uncomfortable.  This is especially if you are outside the US. 

Planning, budget and approach

Before you start giving anything, set a budget and make a list so you cover everyone fairly without overextending yourself.  Some use an “up to” method for guidance, as in “up to one session,” or “up to a week’s salary,” etc.

Like the holidays, this should be fun rather than stressful.  If you are sincere in expressing gratitude, people appreciate that you are doing what you can and often respond with the same cheer you demonstrated. 

For those you can’t tip, you can still make them feel appreciated

If you had to call emergency services or had a great experience with someone else who is not allowed to receive a holiday tip, you can send letters of thanks directly to a local hospital, fire station or police department.  You may be able to send a meal or buy coffee.  Check for any online bulletin board in your town, both to post a thank you note and to see if there are other ways to acknowledge your those you appreciate. 

“Neither snow nor rain…” – the delivery people

Despite the weather, terrain or traffic, your mail carriers, FedEx, UPS and Amazon drivers deliver your mail and packages every day and ensure that your online purchases arrive on time and in good condition.  

As you decide what and how much to give, check each particular company’s gift giving restrictions:

1.  Mail carriers – are prohibited from receiving any cash gifts and can get gifts valued no more than $20.  Unfortunately, the limit has not increased for inflation.

2.  FedEx – employees are prohibited from accepting gifts, but a wave, a smile or a note would be nice.

3.  UPS – workers are allowed to accept tips, but UPS discourages the practice.

4.  Newspaper delivery – if you still get the news in print, a gift of $15-$35 is standard.

5.  Amazon driver – we suggest the same as for newspaper delivery. 

6.  Food delivery and curbside pickup – again we suggest the same as for newspaper delivery.

Caregivers for kids, parents and pets

Caregivers for your children, parents and pets can be lifesavers as they provide care, education, exercise, and attention to those you care about most.  This is the time of year to let them know that you are thankful for all that they do.  The amount of service they provide and the arrangement you have with them can dictate the appropriate gift level:

1.  Nanny/au pair – a week’s salary and a small gift.

2.  Daycare teachers – a $25-$75 gift.

3.  Home healthcare worker – from one week up to a month’s salary.  If tips are not permitted, consider cooking or baking something special.  If the care is in a senior living or hospital setting, be sure to cover the whole shift. 

4.  Teacher – a small gift and a handmade card from your child.  Note that a cash gift could be misconstrued as a bribe.  You can pool resources with other parents for a gift card. 

5.  Dog walker – depending on your walker’s schedule, you may want to give a day’s pay up to a full week’s pay.

6.  Dog groomer – from half up to the full cost for a single service.

If you contract any of these services through an agency, you may want to contact the agency to find out if they have a gift-giving policy in effect.  If the agency prohibits gifts, consider alternatives like making a donation to the agency or sending in homemade cookies to the office, or sneak a Starbucks card into their stockings. 

Home Maintenance

Whether you live in a single-family home or a large apartment building, it’s likely there is someone who services your home or property in some way. 

1.  Trash and recycling collectors – a gift of $25-$35, which you may want to mail directly to the collection company if you can’t safely leave for the collectors.

2.  Door attendant – a gift of $25-$100, depending on their role during the year.

3.  Regular cleaning person – up to the cost of one visit.

4.  Landscapers/gardeners – a gift of $25-$50 per person or if you have just one person doing the work, up to the cost of one visit.

5.  Parking garage attendant – a gift of $25-$50.

6.  Building’s handyman, superintendent and custodian – a gift of $25-$100.

If you have someone who always goes the extra mile, such as a handyman who’s prompt and efficient or a door attendant who is quick to carry heavy packages for you, then a larger tip may be warranted. 

Personal Services

It’s hard work keeping you fit, perfectly coiffed and beautiful, and ready to face the day.  Now is a good time to show appreciation for those efforts, especially when they help you get that special appointment when you really need it.  In deciding whether to tip and how much, consider this:

1.  Hairdresser/manicurist – if you’re a frequent visitor, tip up to the cost of one visit.  If you’re a less frequent customer, then $20.  However, if you tip generously through the year, you do not need to give an extra tip at the end of the year.  If multiple people work on your hair, divide the tip among them.  And if any of them double as your therapist, add a bit more!

2.  Personal trainer – up to the cost of one visit.

3.  Massage therapist – also up to cost of one visit.

4.  Golf or tennis instructor or sax teacher – up to one lesson or a thoughtful gift.

Good feedback is appreciated by their supervisor as well as by the people who are helping you out. 

If you’re unable to tip or give a gift, a thoughtful thank you note will acknowledge the good work these people do for you throughout the year.   

Send a thank you note to the supervisors of the people who provide you with great service throughout the year, letting them know how impressed you are with the service their people provide.

Enjoy the season!

  • Steven

Year-end tax planning 2025

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This post is long and involves many issues, not all of which will apply to you, so use the headings to find the ones that fit your situation. 

Tax planning overview – know the changes and know how to respond

First, impact of the new tax law:  the One Big Beautiful Bill (“OBBB”) made many of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act (“TCJA”) changes permanent while ending energy credits, allowing for deduction of some tips and overtime, and adding new accounts.  See our post on the new law for more on the new law.  Along with the new law, the Administration is banning the Treasury from sending or receiving checks (see below).  If you have not set up an online account with the IRS, please consider doing so. 

Second, be practical:  start with reviewing what items you are able to change – for example, paying real estate taxes in one year may be better than another, but that is very hard to accomplish if you have an escrow with your mortgage payments.  On the other hand, you may be able to incur medical expenses all in one year, so you exceed the limit and are able to deduct a portion. 

You can also bunch some items from two or more years to be deducted all in one year, such as charitable donations.  If you don’t want the charity to have a large amount all at once, give to a donor-advised fund (“DAF”) for the deduction and then dole out from the DAF over time to the charity. 

Third – your two-year goal: the goal is to reduce the total tax for the two years combined.  For example, while many may want to delay income, some may benefit from increasing 2025 income.  One way to increase income that we have discussed before is a Roth conversion – see below.

Review the tax changes

Some changes require no planning or response from you:  OBBB locked in tax rates, increased the standard deduction and child credit, and allowed more for child care.

Others require planning:  The SALT limit went from $10,000 to $40,000.  Seniors get a $6,000 deduction to offset taxes on social security.  A deduction is allowed for tips and overtime for some workers.  Up to $10,000 of interest on new auto, SUV, truck and motorcycle loans can be deducted if you have US final assembly. 

Clean-energy credits for EVs have ended and will end for residences. 

High income itemizes have to address the stealth tax again – the deductions are limited to the 35% rate (rather than allow the full 37%).

Next year:  new for 2026, there is an above-the-line charitable deduction up to $1,000 per person.  However, itemizers can deduct only to the extent the donations exceed .5% of income.  And donations to qualifying scholarship organizations receive a tax credit up to $1,700. 

The employer provided account for dependent care increases from $5,000 to $7,500.

OBBB implementation – with IRS cutbacks and government shutdown, the full implementation of the changes for 2025 filing will delay forms and filing.  For example, providing for the tip and overtime deductions requires revamping form 1040 with new Schedule 1-A. 

Strategic considerations

SALT deductions:  The limit on state and local taxes, or SALT, has increased but so has the standard deduction, making planning for bunching deductions complicated when you review the SALT portion of your itemized deduction strategy.  Bunching real estate tax or estimated payments may help max your SALT deduction.  

Retirement plans:  The age for required minimum distributions (RMDs) is now 73, so taxpayers turning 73 in 2025 have until April 1, 2026 to take their first RMD, calculated on your December 31, 2024, balance.  Tax planning on this is crucial, as taking the RMD before 2026 may result in a lower total tax for 2025 and 2026 as you have the 2026 RMD due in 2026.  If you wait, you have two RMDs in 2026, which could push you into a higher tax bracket.  

Charities:  For charitable giving, see if you can donate appreciated assets directly and avoid the capital gains tax.  Also, if you are considering a qualified charitable distribution (QCD), up to $108,000 in 2025 and expected to be $115,000 in 2026 counts for your RMD (but not to a DAF).  Also, you can make a one-time contribution to $53,000 to a charitable remainder annuity trust, charitable remainder unitrust or a charitable gift annuity. 

Estates:  As noted in a prior post, the annual exclusion for gifting is now $19,000 and it will remain $19,000 next year.  If you have plans to transfer wealth, keep this in mind.  See more on estate planning below.  

Some ways to shift income:

  • Roth Conversion – One way to increase income now, avoiding future income, is to convert part of an IRA to a Roth IRA, converting from taxable to non-taxable distributions in the future.  Decide on the amount to convert by projecting the impact of the conversion on your marginal tax rate.  Converting to a Roth also saves you from required minimum distributions in future years (but non-spouse beneficiaries still face the 10-year clean-out we discussed before as part of the SECURE Act). 
  • Back-Door Roth – Along with converting, the “back-door Roth” is still available, so you can put more retirement funds aside with no tax on future distributions.  That is, for those who cannot contribute to a Roth due to income limits, they may be able to contribute to a non-deductible IRA and then convert that IRA to a Roth IRA. 
  • Move income and deductions – Other ways to shift income include billing more in 2025 or delaying to 2026 for your S Corp., LLC or partnership, exercising stock options, and selling ESPP shares.  Businesses can buy vehicles and other capital assets for bonus depreciation write-offs in 2025.
  • Capital gains – You probably do not want to accelerate capital gains, as they may be taxed lower rates in future years.  You can utilize tax-loss harvesting to shelter gains already realized for 2025 by identifying any losses and realizing them in 2025.  If you want to buy back these securities, watch out for the wash-sale rules.  And be sure not to use assets with a loss for charitable donations or buy new funds just before dividend distributions!

More considerations – check the details:

Declare Crypto – If you had any crypto currency transactions during the year, selling, buying or receiving, be sure to declare on your federal 1040 filing.

Unemployment tax – Remember, unemployment benefits are fully taxable, so be sure you withheld taxes or pay estimates. 

IT PIN – If you are concerned about identity theft, consider obtaining an IT PIN as discussed in our post on IRS scams.

  • Note: the reduction in funding for the IRS is predicted to result in delays in processing refunds and paper returns and is expected to encourage more fraud.   

No more payments or refunds by check – the IRS announced this:

Executive order prohibiting the U.S. Treasury Department (Treasury) from accepting paper checks as tax payments or issuing checks for tax refunds … The E.O. also requires that all payments to the federal government (e.g., taxes, fees, fines, and loan repayments) be processed electronically as soon as practicable.

Flex accounts – Check to see if you have any flex account balances that expire that can still be used.  And consider HSA contributions.

Qualified plans and IRAs – Make sure to max-out on your 401(k) and other plans and make an IRA contribution if you can. 

Before you finish, check withholdings and estimates paid – Especially if you increase income in 2025, review your total paid to the IRS and state via withholdings and estimates to be sure that you meet the safe harbor rules.  If not, you could owe interest for under-withholding.

And remember your estate plan

While you review your taxes, review your estate plan as well.  The federal gift and estate tax credit  rises to $15 million for 2026, and may go up further.  As noted above, the annual gift tax exclusion will remains at $19,000 next year. 

If you have excess wealth, you may want to gift while you can, especially if you want to use certain trusts, like a GRAT or QPRT.  However, if you are well below the credit level, you may want to focus on the step up in basis rather than estate tax avoidance.  See our post on using the step up in basis.  And for more on estate planning updates, see our estate planning checkup post. 

  • If you do review your estate plan documents, also review beneficiary designations and asset ownership to make sure everything is current and flows correctly to trusts, etc.  See our post on asset ownership for more.
  • Step up – for Massachusetts residents, the exemption is now $2 million (as of January 1, 2023).  This may affect your portability planning on income and estate taxes in an estate – see our post on using the step up in basis for planning ideas.
  • Disaster planning – with the impact of climate change, we are experiencing more disasters.  And with cutbacks to weather forecasting and FEMA, more of us may be affected.  We offer some ideas to make sure you are prepared. 
  • Beyond basic planning – a good estate plan goes beyond signed documents and provides the information for survivors so that they know your wishes, where to find everything and who you want to receive it.  Give them clear instructions; you don’t leave them with a mess!  Here is our guide to writing a memorandum that goes well beyond just signing documents; it covers the items your survivors will have to address. 

Summary

As you review your 2025-2026 tax planning, consider the impact of the tax changes, then follow through on the details.  Let us know if you have any questions. 

Good luck and best wishes for happy and healthy holidays!

Steven 

As Scammers try harder, just be more clever! (update)

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We are constantly assaulted by texts, emails and calls with people trying to access our information for their benefit or trying to trick us into sending them payments.  How do you protect yourself?

The first step:  Think before panicking and reacting; careful observation could save you from a scam!  If you have an emotional response to a message, try to assess why and wait to respond.  Scammers use deception and emotions, so be wary.  

Second step:  practice computer and internet hygiene – install all updates, run anti-virus and malware programs, avoid suspicious interactions, freeze your credit accounts and monitor your credit, use multi-factor verification, and respond to any bona fide alerts.  Also encrypt and back-up sensitive data to protect it from access.  

Final step:  never divulge personal information without first verifying the contact independently.  For a text or email, check your account on your smartphone app or website browser – but don’t use the link in the message!  If the message is a text, you can often delete and report it as junk on your phone. 

We updated some examples of recent scams – any sound familiar? – to help you calm any emotional reaction before responding:

  • Do you really think you won a lottery you never entered?  There is the old joke that says, “what, you didn’t buy a ticket?”
  • If you don’t have a credit card with Wells Fargo, why are they calling you about a BestBuy purchase?  This may make you curious and want call only to hear the recording asking you to input your debit card number – don’t provide it!  Banks and brokers will not ask you to divulge your information.  Also, you can verify the bank numbers on line. 
  • If Amazon really thinks there is fraud, why does the person answering the call say “Thanks for calling Amazon” when the call came from them?  Why do they know nothing about your account information?  If there was a fraud, they would be telling you about the transaction instead of asking for all your account details.  Check your account on your app or the Amazon website. 
  • Do you think you won a gift from Ace Hardware, Walmart or another place where you haven’t been shopping?  Check the e-mail address or text number – if it’s not from the company, then someone is trying to gain access to your information.  
  • Should I respond to this silly personality quiz on Facebook?  No, it might be phishing for personal details for identity theft.
  • Is this great job offer for me?  If you didn’t apply, why is this company reaching out to you?  Again, check the email address or phone number independently. 
  • Do you actually think you are the one randomly chosen to receive an inheritance from someone in another country who supposedly has no heirs?  The estate mentioned is often from a country you may never have visited, and the estate is an enormous amount.  As your grandmother may have told you, “if it sounds too good to be true, it is!”
  • Does your phone or computer really have this terrible virus?  How did they detect this?  Run your own antivirus scan. 
  • If you did not buy a MacBook or AirPods and no one stole your credit card, why is someone calling from the Netherlands to claim a purchase was made on your account?  Often you can tell that the callers are not from the companies they claim. 
  • Why did you receive a Docusign message or a PDF attached to an email for your salary or benefits?  And why did it come from someone’s personal email?  Clicking on the link could allow them to install malware and gain access to your financial information – don’t!
  • It may look like a Microsoft message or some other legit message, but why do you suddenly need to update your account password or sign for a matter you don’t recognize?  Check the source of the message –official-looking messages can come from dubious senders, often outside the US.  Be wary of e-mails from random accounts rather than the actual vendor.  
  • Why is someone calling about a Zelle transfer? When you listen, the case number looks suspiciously like a phone number that could allow then to gain access to your bank account. 
  • Why is the border patrol in Texas calling you and claiming that they opened your mail and need to put a hold on your social security number?  What does it even mean to “put a hold on your social security number” and how does that even relate to contraband?
  • Why is UPS or FedEx claiming the item is undeliverable because your address is wrong?  If you did place an order, you would have confirmed the address.  Check the source of the text or email and independently verify any purchases on the vendor site. 
  • You may be worried about crime in your city, but is that robo-caller really providing funds to support police? Most police departments do not solicit funds by this way so hang up and verify any charity before donating.
  • Why are they offering tax debt relief when you are current on your taxes?  Was there some new IRS program you never heard of?  Check with us before responding. 

Summary

If something seems off, it probably is.  Try to avoid a panicked reaction when you receive a notice of an unauthorized payment, an overdue bill, a payment authorization you didn’t expect or a claim that you violated customs.  And don’t click on any link!  Go to the vendor’s phone app or website to access via a browser you trust to check before responding.  The link in a text or e-mail may appear okay but close examination may reveal some flaw.  

And here is good reminder from the IRS:

  • The IRS will never contact a taxpayer using social media or text message. The first contact from the IRS usually comes in the mail. Taxpayers who are unsure whether they owe money to the IRS can view their tax account information on IRS.gov.

The FTC suggests that you can send a screenshot to 7726 (SPAM).  This may help your wireless provider identify and block similar messages in the future.  You can also report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.  And if you do become a victim, this New York Times article How to Avoid Online Scams and What to Do if You Become a Victim had information with links on what to do if you are scammed.  

Stay safe and let me know if you have any questions or comments! 

Steven

Impact of One Big Beautiful Bill

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The One Big Beautiful Bill is now law

After considerable wrangling, Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill and President Trump signed it into law.  As we noted before, the new tax law meets President Trump’s campaign promise to make provisions of the 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act or “TCJA” permanent; it also adds some new provisions.  We updated our abbreviated summary of the new bill at the bottom of this post. 

What is the Impact of New Tax Law?

This example on how the new tax law did not result in simplification is worth repeating:

Assessing the impact and planning – The increase in the deduction allowed for state and local tax or “SALT” to $40,000 could reduce taxes for many, allowing them to include more state and local taxes when they itemize.  But, the impact is blunted because the standard deduction also increased (you take the larger of the two).  Then the benefit of itemized deductions is capped when you hit the 35% bracket (so there is no increased benefit for the 37% bracket).  The above-the-line charitable deduction also reduces the impact of itemizing.  And increasing the SALT deduction could mean you owe the Alternative Minimum Tax or “AMT.”  In other words, you have to run tax projections to determine the best action. 

Bunching – In previous posts, we have advised bunching of deductions into a single year so you can optimize itemizing.  That planning may be both more important and tougher to do as you now have to watch state and local taxes as well as charitable contributions.  

New or enhanced provisions – There are many new provisions that you need to review to see if they could affect you and determine if you qualify and need to act.  The new Trump account provides an alternative to 529 plans for young families saving for children.  And access to health savings accounts (HSAs) for seniors could provide a new resource for planning. 

Expiring credits – The expiration of electric vehicle credits and energy-efficient home credits means that you need to act this year if you were considering those purchases.  

Conclusion

You may see benefits from the final tax law, but extracting the full amount will require careful planning.  

In the meantime, please contact us if you have any questions and good luck!

Steven  

A Quick Summary:

The new law will keep the same tax rates and AMT exemption. 

It increases the state and local tax or SALT limit to $40,000, but then cuts it back for income over $500,000.  The cap will increase by 1% each year but revert to $10,000 in 2030. 

It extends the standard deduction from TCJA with a temporary increase to $32,000 for married filing joint taxpayers or “MFJ” for 2025 through 2028 and adds a $6,000 bonus standard deduction for taxpayers over 65, but this phases out for income of $150,000 to $250,000 for MFJ and also ends in 2028. 

There is now an above-the-line deduction for up to $25,000 of qualified tip income and $12,500 for qualified overtime, if your income is below the related caps. Note that the income is still subject to FICA and Medicare deductions.  

The new law restores the “above the line” deduction for up to $2,000 to a charity for married couples or $1,000 for all others beginning in 2026. 

The new and used electric vehicle or EV credits end September 30, 2025; the credits for energy efficient homes end December 31, 2025.  

The dependent care credit is increased to $7,500 in 2026.

It temporarily increases the child credit from $2,000 to $2,200 through 2028, adjusted for inflation and subject to the same phaseouts as the current law. 

You can deduct up to $10,000 of car loan interest for new cars with final assembly in the US, but with a phaseout for income over $200,000 for married filers and $100,000 for singles. 

You can contribute up to $5,000 per year into a new Trump account for a child until age 18 beginning in 2026.  The account can then be used for education, business or a new home.  Employers can contribute up to $2,500 which is excluded from the employee’s taxable income.  Qualified distributions are subject to capital gains tax while all other distributions are subject to ordinary rates plus 10%. 

Adoption credits are expanded as are contributions allowed to ABLE accounts.  Roll overs from tuition plans to ABLE accounts are allowed.  Qualifications for tax-free distributions from 529 plans are expanded.

Seniors receiving Medicare can contribute to health savings accounts or HSAs if they have a high-deductible health insurance plans.  This is a great way for tax sheltered growth to cover future bills.  The new law allows taxpayers and spouses to make catchup contributions. 

The bill adds 1% tax on remittances by non-US Citizens for transfers out of the USA.   

The rule for 1099-K reporting finally goes from $600 to $20,000 and 200 transactions while 1099NEC reporting goes from in excess of $600 to $2,000. 

A new credit up to $1,700 is allowed for qualifying contributions to 501(c)(3) organizations that grant scholarships.  

A new tiered structure was added for tax on qualified small business stock gains.

Losses on gambling are limited to 90% of winnings. 

The QBID stays at 20%.        

And estate planning:

The estate and gift tax credit rises to $15 million in 2026.  As we pointed out in a post a while back, fewer people will owe estate taxes so more may want to work on the income taxes due after their deaths, utilizing the step up in basis to shelter gains.

Beyond basic estate planning – helping your heirs sort it all out

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When we talk about estate planning, most people think of signing a will (some may even mention a revocable trust as well).  But having signed documents is only the beginning; not following through can still leave a mess for your heirs.  You need to go beyond the basic plan. 

The Basic Plan – means you executed a will and probably a revocable trust, updated beneficiary designations and changed ownership to match your documents to minimize estate taxes and control flow of your inheritance.  For this post, we assume you have a good plan (check out the post to be sure) and if you have not acted, please see estate planning checkup: why you don’t, why you should. 

Beyond Basic – is the focus of this post so you prepare the people who survive you so they can assemble the pieces you leave behind and make decisions.  We review this roughly in the order in which they will have to address everything and respond so nothing is left unresolved. 

Write notes or better provide a memorandum now

How do you address “beyond basic estate planning”?  One way is to have a detailed conversation or better yet to  provide a memorandum for your personal representative, trustee, children or close friend that can help them navigate all the steps required after your death.  Start by with telling them where to look for everything.  But a good “beyond basic estate planning” plan encompasses more than listing where to locate the documents you signed, it tells survivors who to notify (attorney, tax preparer, insurance agent), how to access your accounts on line or in person, and who gets what and when.  

Note:  make sure they know where your original will is located, as well as whom to contact.  Not having the original can cause problems.  Same for other originals like stock certificates and car titles. 

Notifications

When you die, the first step for your survivors will be to notify family and friends and to arrange for services.  Make sure your survivors know everyone you want them to contact or even who you don’t want attending your services.  Also, make sure they know if you want to be buried or cremated.  If you have a plot, let them know where.  If you envision a particular service, tell them. 

Beyond telling friends and family of your services, there will be more notifications:

Professionals – make sure they know your attorney and tax prep person so they can notify and they can be ready for their roles – more on this below.

Medical professionals – depending on your death, your family will want to make sure your family doctor and others are notified. 

Social Media – do you want them to post about your demise on social media? – more on this below.

Social Security – your heirs will need to inform the administration so that they stop your benefit.  Your spouse will need to sign up for the spousal benefit.  

Banks and investments – your heirs will need to let banks and brokers know so no one other than your personal representative tries to gain access. 

Board of directors or other office positions – if you are on a board or hold office, be sure survivors know whom to contact. 

Death certificate 

Soon after your death, a medical examiner will produce a death certificate.  That will be required for filing in probate, if necessary, and for access to benefits and accounts or making certain transfers.  Your personal representative will want to provide copies to your attorney but hold some copies for transferring accounts and titles.  

Internet age – social media and online accounts  

What do you want your heirs to do with your social media?  You want to avoid anyone gaining access and attempting identity theft.  Do you want them to leave your profile active for a period? 

Do you have shared accounts where you are the manager, such as a photo stream on your smartphone?  Be sure survivors know how to access and copy.  For instance, anything in an Apple photo stream disappears once the source photo is deleted so deleting your iPhone account could cause all photos taken by you to be lost and pictures you contributed to various photostreams will disappear.  Check with your provider to be sure how to archive what you want archived.

The same may apply to other items stored on your smartphone.  You may need to maintain your account until others access and save everything.  You can also setup cloud storage and make sure they know how to access. 

How do they access your online accounts?  How do they terminate all those subscriptions you never canceled?  Your memorandum should include information for key people that are likely to survive you.  They will need IDs and passwords for all your online accounts.  You may also want to provide access to your smartphone so they can use the apps that may have reward balances. 

With access to your online accounts, they can stop recurring payments, end subscriptions, and pay bills until they have access to your assets.  If your assets are already in trust, the trustee may be able to pay bills as required.  If your assets are not in trust, the personal representative will need to transfer them to estate accounts after being appointed. 

Make sure your list of all IDs and passwords identifies key accounts and is provided to somebody you trust so they can manage access until accounts are transferred. 

Assets and accounts

When listing your online accounts, provide a detailed list of all your assets so nothing is overlooked and ends up unclaimed.  Your survivors may be able to see the accounts on line and provide statements to your attorney. 

If you are holding assets for others or promised to make a gift (see below), be sure to state this in your memorandum. 

As noted above, they will need certain originals, like your will and titles to cars.  If you hold certificates for stocks or bonds, they will need to know where to look – a safe deposit box?  If you have cryptocurrency or other digital assets, they will need to know where your wallet is and how to access your accounts. 

Specific gifts of personal items

If you have items for which you have certain people in mind, make sure your personal representative knows.  As noted above, if you are holding items for others or have promised to make gifts, be sure your personal representative knows your intent.  You may also want certain personal items to go to specific people, such as heirlooms, jewelry, memorabilia, etc.  You may have signed a tangibles memorandum with your will; if not, be sure to list items and recipients.

Life insurance and benefits

If you have life insurance, make sure they know where the policy is and who handles it.  The personal representative will need to contact them to arrange payment to the policy beneficiaries. 

The same for any pension for survivors and other benefits. 

Retirement plans

If you have qualified plans, make sure beneficiaries know they will be receiving your account.  They may need a death certificate and have forms completed by the personal representative to have the account transferred to them as an inherited IRA. 

Tax returns

Notify your tax preparer so they know to advise on what needs to be filed.  They will file a tax return for the part of the year when you were living and then an estate return for the remainder. 

Conclusion

Think through all you do now and imagine what others would require in order to be able to do those things then write it down!  Save your survivors from having to be detectives. 

In the end, your memory will survive and you will be known for your deeds and how you treated others. 

Steven