02-22-2023 Primetime Living - Flipbook - Page 24
24 A Special Advertising Section of Baltimore Sun Media Group | Wednesday, February 22, 2023
FINANCE
Preparing
your legacy
Get your financial
house in order
By Margit B. Weisgal, Contributing Writer
Tom Cusick
P
We never know what
will happen tomorrow.
Are you prepared?
aula D. repeatedly ignored her friends’ advice to write a will, especially after her
partner died. Then, she was suddenly taken ill and died a week later. Her house,
her retirement account and all her other assets went to the State of Maryland.
The COVID-19 pandemic has
increased our awareness that we need
a will. Despite that, a CNBC survey conducted less than a year ago says, “only
about 33% of Americans have established estate plans.” Yes, that’s right: 67
percent don’t have a will, a living trust or
any of the documents you should have
in case of an emergency. Why? Forty
percent say, “they just haven’t gotten
around to it.”
Tom Cusick, C.F.P., partner at the
Kelly Group, explains why this can happen. “There’s an emotional component
to financial planning, a reason you delay
doing what you know you should do.
It’s usually caused by how we grew up
and how we deal with money issues.
Generally, people try to avoid thinking
about their own passing.”
Cusick then explains, “Most deci-
sions, actions people take, are triggered
by internal or external events. They get
married, have children, have a milestone
birthday or a family member dies. These
act as a ‘call to action,’ telling you it’s
time to get everything in order. Of course,
if you do nothing, the State of Maryland
has a will for you! Known as ‘Intestate
Succession laws,’ the state will happily
take your money or distribute it as it sees
fit – which may or may not come close to
what you want.”
In Maryland, Orphans’ Court judges
(https://mdcourts.gov/) oversee estates
that go through probate. It warns us that
“it is advisable to leave a Will because
you may not wish to leave your property
in the way or in the amounts the general
Intestacy statutes provide.”
The Kelly Group (www.kellyria.com)
is a Registered Investment Advisor.
That means its only responsibility is
to its clients; it doesn’t owe allegiance
to any other company. “It’s clean and
straightforward,” says Cusick. “We are
committed to educating you and your
family on financial matters, providing
advice on estate planning, tax planning,
insurance, retirement, and investments:
every aspect of managing your money.
Because you pay for our advice, our only
obligation is to you.”
The Kelly Group recently celebrated
its 25th anniversary. “The best way to
describe our role in your financial planning is that we act as the quarterback,”
Cusick says. “We always start with your
goals, what you want to accomplish.
From there, we create your personalized roadmap, something you can work
toward or actions you can take to move
forward. We are able to bring in other professionals as needed to help implement
recommendations. This could include tax
accountants, estate attorneys and insurance agents.”