One of the biggest areas that is often overlooked in an estate plan are the seemingly innocuous beneficiary designations tied to assets, like retirement accounts and life insurance.The beneficiary designation seems of limited importance – you just put down the names of the people who get the retirement account at...
With Washington now in another lockdown to reduce Covid-19 cases, I’m hearing questions from landlords and commercial building owners who want to take this time to make the indoor air safe for when they bring employees and customers back inside.Meanwhile health care, biotech, production and manufacturing businesses have remained open...
By Virginia ThomasSpokane Journal of BusinessThe luxury-home market is especially hot in the Spokane-Coeur d’Alene market due to what some agents say is a convergence of factors.They include a relatively low cost of living in the Inland Northwest, perceived safety from Covid-19 in more rural areas, an increase in remote...
Ten months after the arrival of the coronavirus in Washington, the Legislature convened on Jan. 11 for a new session amid a pandemic that will shape every aspect of the session, from the way lawmakers conduct business (over computer screens instead of beneath the Capitol dome) to the issues they...
Now that vaccines are available, we hope our lives will return to the way they were before the coronavirus pandemic blanketed the globe.That is not likely to occur.Last March our booming economy was clobbered by Covid-19. A worldwide pandemic ensued.There was no vaccine to counter it and even though vaccines...
In a pandemic and pretty much in life, people are dealing with grief at some level every single day. Death, divorce, loss of a job, and lately, the death of the life as we once knew it pre-Covid.Recently, I ran into the mom of my son’s elementary school friend who...
Before the Legislature arrives for the 2021 session, some businesses in Washington will be facing the very real prospect of a 500% tax increase.That is on day one, before lawmakers even begin to talk about passing new taxes like an income tax, a capital gains tax or a tax on...
It’s no secret that airlines and airplane manufacturers have been clobbered by the coronavirus pandemic.International flights traditionally flown by jumbo jets are particularly hard hit. Borders are closed and people aren’t flying.There is a small silver-lining. Just as restaurants started take-out service to survive, airlines are filling planes with freight.U.S....
It’s no secret the Covid-19 pandemic has made a huge impact on how Washington retailers and restaurants operate. With additional restrictions implemented at the start of the holiday season as cases surged, it’s another challenge for local small businesses.But that’s where we as a community can step in.Small retailers and...
About a year ago I was contacted by an executive search firm to apply for the president/CEO position at the Tri-City Development Council, or TRIDEC.After a two-month process, I was selected. We sold our house in Lewiston and moved down the Snake River to start the best job I have...
