Holiday Organizing Tips
By Monica Ricci, Professional Organizer, Founder of Catalyst Organizing Solutions

The holidays are supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, but for some, they're the most hectic and stressful! Tame your holiday chaos and prepare for next year with the following 3 tips!

1. Wrapping It Up For The Year
If you have a small spare closet that really isn't serving you, why not convert it into a permanent gift closet and wrapping station? It will serve you whether you need a gift for a birthday, bar mitzvah, or baby shower.

Install a shelf (minimum 16" deep) about 40" off the floor to use as a wrapping and cutting surface. Above that one, install additional shelves to hold gifts, gift bags, tapes, ribbons, and scissors. Hang a wrapping paper caddy on the back of the closet door and add a small trash can for scraps, and you have a great year round wrapping station.

Security: Because the Markets Aren't Your Only Risk
Featuring Paul Viollis, Ph.D., CEO of Risk Control Strategies
 
As the nation’s financial crisis makes headlines, many of your family’s more clear and present dangers may be flying under the radar. Wealth brings considerable attention and security exposure to families across the globe, and many take appropriate counter measures only after costly, disruptive, or embarrassing events unfold.

According to security expert Dr. Paul Viollis, CEO of Risk Control Strategies, a threat management and security consulting firm, “A lot of high net worth families are led to believe that security is a function of how much they spend. Quite to the contrary, true security is a function of putting countermeasures in place that specifically address the types of threats a family faces.” Dr. Viollis goes on to explain that some appropriate measures come at little or no cost, but families are often sold expensive equipment or monitoring services based on fear tactics.

Protecting How and Where We Live Through Trusts.
By A. Kel Long, III, Estate Planning Attorney

Affluent clients often express a strong desire to remain in their home regardless of advanced age or a decline in health.  However, given the significant cost of private staff to maintain a home and provide in-home care (which may range from $50,000 to well over $500,000 per year), that desire is often at odds with their children's interest in protecting their inheritance. For clients who are intent on remaining home for as long as medically feasible, a properly drafted trust may provide the solution.

Put it in Writing: The Value of Employment Agreements
By Robert E. King, Esq., Founder, Legally Nanny®

You’ve just hired your nanny or other household employee. You’re thrilled, she’s thrilled, and you’re in the employer-employee version of a honeymoon. You can’t imagine that anything will ever go wrong.  While in most cases, fortunately, that’s true, in other cases things can get contentious if your understanding of the details of your arrangement is somehow different than your employee’s understanding of them.

Q:  Do insurance benefits help families retain their employees?  How does a family go about setting up the insurance portion of the benefits package for their domestic employees?

A: The quick answer is YES.  Insurance is a common reason employees stay with their employer, whether it is in a domestic or commercial setting. 

The first step when setting up your insurance plan is to consider exactly what types of insurance to include in the benefits package and from whom to buy them.  Most people immediately think about medical and dental plans and begin comparing rates. 

I suggest clients work first think about a “totem pole” of coverages that start with covering the most likely and catastrophic needs and work their way down so they get the greatest potential return from each insurance dollar. 

Then, they should find an agent who is licensed in their state to sell the individual or small group policies they are looking for.

Q: With all of the new entrants into the private aviation market, how should families assess which option is right for them?

A: As a research-based authority on the private aviation market, we have published a guide that specifically addresses this question.  It first helps consumers understand what the various alternatives are and equips them with the vernacular of the industry, ranging from the types of programs that are out there to the types of aircraft involved to the costs and benefits of each model.

Q: With energy prices soaring and everyone trying to do their part with conservation, what are the top 5 tips or strategies you would recommend to the owners of large homes to be as energy efficient as possible?

A: To many clients’ surprise, energy efficiency and comfort go hand-in-hand, so you don’t have to give up comfort to get more efficient.  The most efficient homes are those that effectively manage indoor air quality, namely humidity, filtration, and infiltration.  Here are several tips.