I am a do-it-yourselfer. I love working around my house: Painting, building, and even stuccoing. But there are exceptions, like plumbing. I hate plumbing. One thing I have learned about my handyman hobby is that I should expect to buy twice the building materials that I should need to complete the project. Experience tells me that I will use all of those materials. My habit is to try to build the first time, fail, and then to try it again. Almost invariably, I will end up building or fixing up the same thing at least twice -- once or twice for practice, and then "for real." Some who would never consider fixing a garage door or stuccoing a wall would unthinkingly prepare a will or trust using many materials found in bookstores. Bookstores abound with quick-fix be-your-own-lawyer books and CDs, featuring forms and fill-the-blank forms and programs for wills, trusts, and powers of attorney for healthcare decisions. Some of these materials are even state specific, offering different provisions for residents of different states.
Some of these do-it-yourself materials are fine, and may even be useful. If correctly used, many of these forms might work for a do-it-yourselfer. But suppose your case is different? Suppose you fail to properly use the form? One thing I have noticed about building materials is that the old rule of thumb generally applies: you get what you pay for. The same is true in estate plan trusts. But it is also true that legal documents such as wills and trusts oftentimes do not "speak" until the author is deceased or incapacitated. Because of this fact, in the case of estate plans the handyman analogy of buying double the building materials breaks down. If a wall is improperly built, it can be torn down and redone. But if a will is improperly drafted, or if it fails to state the intent of the author, there is often no opportunity for a second try. Rather, in many cases, when the author of the will or trust is incapacitated or deceased, the planning "solution" either fails, or has completely unexpected and unwanted consequences. Still, to be a good consumer of legal services, self-education is essential in communicating needs to an estate planning professional. The following is an overview of some of the major estate planning topics that should be applicable in most states.
Your estate planning attorneys will help you determine, from the existing state of your financial affairs, including your investments, real estate holdings, and personal property, what your estate planning goals should be. They will help you get a realistic picture of the potential needs of your survivors, and elicit a clear understanding of your final health care desires.
With that information, estate planning attorneys can then explain to you the best alternatives for seeing that your estate is handled as you wish. They will not only discuss wills and trusts; they will present options which you can employ immediately to lessen the taxes and probate costs on your estate.
Estate planning attorneys can also advise you as to whether or not any personal changes in you life will require a change in your estate plan. If, for instance, you are widowed or divorced, in you later years, and considering remarriage, you should be aware that there may be consequences for your estate. Should you remarry late in life, you and you spouse will be responsible for the costs of each other's long-term health care should one of you be placed in a nursing home. Those costs be a significant drain on you, or you future spouse's, assets.
If you have children from an earlier marriage and intend to remarry, changing your estate plan so that you will include your new spouse among your heirs, there is a possibility of conflicted feelings among your children. Estate planning attorneys can suggest ways in which you can begin to distribute the assets you intend to leave to you children assets among your children during your lifetime without it causing tax consequences. Estate tax attorneys will draft and execute all the legal paperwork, including your will, living or testamentary trust, health care directive, and powers of attorney which are necessary to carry out you wishes. They will also do the research needed to make sure that the tax consequences to your estate are minimized, consulting with tax experts if needed.
Some of these do-it-yourself materials are fine, and may even be useful. If correctly used, many of these forms might work for a do-it-yourselfer. But suppose your case is different? Suppose you fail to properly use the form? One thing I have noticed about building materials is that the old rule of thumb generally applies: you get what you pay for. The same is true in estate plan trusts. But it is also true that legal documents such as wills and trusts oftentimes do not "speak" until the author is deceased or incapacitated. Because of this fact, in the case of estate plans the handyman analogy of buying double the building materials breaks down. If a wall is improperly built, it can be torn down and redone. But if a will is improperly drafted, or if it fails to state the intent of the author, there is often no opportunity for a second try. Rather, in many cases, when the author of the will or trust is incapacitated or deceased, the planning "solution" either fails, or has completely unexpected and unwanted consequences. Still, to be a good consumer of legal services, self-education is essential in communicating needs to an estate planning professional. The following is an overview of some of the major estate planning topics that should be applicable in most states.
Your estate planning attorneys will help you determine, from the existing state of your financial affairs, including your investments, real estate holdings, and personal property, what your estate planning goals should be. They will help you get a realistic picture of the potential needs of your survivors, and elicit a clear understanding of your final health care desires.
With that information, estate planning attorneys can then explain to you the best alternatives for seeing that your estate is handled as you wish. They will not only discuss wills and trusts; they will present options which you can employ immediately to lessen the taxes and probate costs on your estate.
Estate planning attorneys can also advise you as to whether or not any personal changes in you life will require a change in your estate plan. If, for instance, you are widowed or divorced, in you later years, and considering remarriage, you should be aware that there may be consequences for your estate. Should you remarry late in life, you and you spouse will be responsible for the costs of each other's long-term health care should one of you be placed in a nursing home. Those costs be a significant drain on you, or you future spouse's, assets.
If you have children from an earlier marriage and intend to remarry, changing your estate plan so that you will include your new spouse among your heirs, there is a possibility of conflicted feelings among your children. Estate planning attorneys can suggest ways in which you can begin to distribute the assets you intend to leave to you children assets among your children during your lifetime without it causing tax consequences. Estate tax attorneys will draft and execute all the legal paperwork, including your will, living or testamentary trust, health care directive, and powers of attorney which are necessary to carry out you wishes. They will also do the research needed to make sure that the tax consequences to your estate are minimized, consulting with tax experts if needed.
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Frank Miller has a Debt Consolidation Blog & Finance, these are some of the articles: How To Get The Best Rates On Life Insurance You have full permission to reprint this article provided this box is kept unchanged.
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