If you have yet to create an estate plan, there is no time like the present to get your plan started with the help of the estate planning attorneys at Kulas Law Group. After all, a properly drafted estate plan can protect not just your hard-earned assets, but also you and your loved ones. We understand how important creating your first estate plan is to you which is why our estate planning attorneys are committed to providing our friends and neighbors in the Hobe Sound, Florida community with all the assistance necessary to create a successful, and comprehensive, estate plan.
Hobe Sound got its name from the name of the Jove or Jobe Indians, one of the Native American groups that lived in the area before European settlement. Because of the early Spanish influence throughout the area, the word “Jobe” was pronounced as if it were spelled “Hobe,” hence the name Hobe Sound. Although most of Florida did not become part of the United States until much later, the area that is now Hobe Sound was “discovered” by European settlors as early as 1696 when a British ship sailing from Jamaica to Philadelphia sank close to the shore north of Jupiter Inlet. The small Quaker party of 25 passengers and crew, including its most notable passenger, Jonathan Dickinson, encountered and received aid from the Jove Indians. Shortly thereafter the area became known as Hobe Sound. Florida would remain under Spanish or British rule for more than a century after that. It wasn’t until the middle of the 19th Century (1845) that Florida officially became a the 27th state to join the United States of America. Shortly after the turn of the 20th century, Henry Flagler built his railroad along the east coast of Florida passing through Hobe Sound. This gradually created many opportunities including jobs, the birth of tourism, and other related industries. The “Roaring 20s” resulted in a land grab in Florida and big plans for Hobe Sound. The town was to become a movie production center. Plan were made to create a town in Greek style with street names to go along with the theme, such Zeus, Saturn, Mercury, Mars, Olympus, Venus, Pluto and Athena. Hobe Sound was even briefly renamed “Picture City.” The 1928 Okeechobee hurricane derailed the plans for Picture City: however, the street names remained as did the cement streetlights along Dixie Highway.
Located along the Atlantic Coast in southern Florida, Hobe Sound is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Martin County. As of the 2010 Census, Hobe Sound had 11,521 year around residents. It is part of the Port St. Lucie Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is often said that at Hobe Sound’s front door lies the Gold Coast and that at her back door lies the Treasure Coast. Hobe Sound is a predominantly wealthy community whose residents have included such celebrities as “Tiger” Woods, Alan Jackson, Celine Dion, and Burt Reynolds among others.
Residents and visitors alike enjoy the pristine beaches, unspoiled parks, and championship golf courses of Hobe Sound. You will also want to visit Jonathan Dickinson State Park for camping and canoeing or Blowing Rocks Preserve to view the limestone-studded beach. At high tide, particularly in winter and after storms, water is forced through the holes in the rocks as high as 50 feet in the air. Snorkelers are fond of the preserve’s limestone formations, the largest on the nation’s east coast, found right in Hobe Sound. Hobe Sound has something to offer just about everyone!
At Kulas Law Group, we understand that choosing an attorney to help you create your estate plan can be a difficult, and sometimes stressful, process given the importance –and sensitive nature — of the finished product. We are committed to helping our friends and neighbors in the Hobe Sound community to create an estate plan that addresses all of your concerns and achieves all of your goals. Moreover, our goal is to develop an ongoing relationship with each client to help ensure that the client’s estate plan will remain current and effective in the years to come.
Creating ongoing relationships with our clients is important because estate planning is not something that should be accomplished in a single meeting, nor is it something that is ever truly finished. On the contrary, your estate plan should be reviewed and revised throughout your lifetime as events transpire that should prompt changes to your plan. We hope to be there with you for all those important events to help ensure that your estate plan accounts for those changes. Marriage and/or parenthood, for example, may bring with it the need to include a trust in your estate plan along with incapacity planning strategies and probate avoidance tools. As the value of your estate grows, you may need to consider adding asset protection strategies into your plan. Your retirement plan will also need to be merged with your estate plan to ensure that the two plans work in harmony with one another. Finally, as you look toward your “Golden Years,” the need to include Medicaid planning and funeral planning to your comprehensive estate plan should be discussed. At Kulas Law Group, we would be honored to be with you throughout your life’s journey to help ensure that your estate planning needs, wishes, and objectives are fulfilled.
For more information, or if you have specific questions or concerns regarding estate planning, or wish to get started on your plan, contact the experienced Hobe Sound, Florida estate planning attorneys at Kulas Law Group by calling (772) 398-0720 to schedule an appointment.