by Lauren Jackson | Aug 2, 2026 | Attorney, buying a home, Kane County, Real Estate, real estate closing, selling a home, Taxes
One of the biggest numbers on your closing statement, and the one clients ask me about most, isn’t the price of the house. It’s the real estate tax credit. If you’re selling, it can feel like a big chunk of your proceeds. If you’re buying, it...
by Lauren Jackson | Jul 3, 2026 | Attorney, Guardian, Lawyer, Power of Attorney
A lot of the calls I get about adult guardianship start the same way: an adult child has noticed their mom or dad can no longer keep track of their bills, or a family member calls because a brother was in an accident and can no longer make his own medical decisions....
by Lauren Jackson | May 5, 2026 | Estate Planning, intentionally defective grantor trust, Trusts
An Intentionally Defective Grantor Trust (IDGT) is a sophisticated estate planning strategy designed to shift future appreciation out of a client’s taxable estate while intentionally preserving certain income tax obligations. When properly structured, it allows the...
by Lauren Jackson | Apr 30, 2026 | Attorney, executor, Lawyer, Probate
Losing someone you love is hard. And somewhere in the middle of that grief, you may find yourself named executor of an estate, holding a will you’ve never seen before, and wondering where to begin. You don’t have to figure it out alone — and you...
by Lauren Jackson | Mar 6, 2026 | Attorney, buying a home, Lawyer, Real Estate, real estate appraisal, selling a home
What Happens When a Home Doesn’t Appraise? If you are in the process of buying a home, you probably have a lot of unanswered questions. One common concern buyers and sellers share is whether the home will appraise at the contract price. Everyone involved in the...
