An estate plan is a process of creating a set of instructions that tells heirs what to do with their assets and property after they die. It also specifies who will make decisions about your medical care, personal issues, and funeral arrangements if you become incapacitated before death.
Why Start Early With Planning Your Estate?
The earlier you start, the better. It’s critical to have an estate plan in place even if you’re young and healthy so that your family will know what to do when the time comes.
What Are The Different Types Of Estate Plans?
There are many different types of plans: wills, trusts, joint ownership with rights of survivorship, etc.
How To Select An Attorney And Other Legal Team Members
Suppose you decide that a lawyer is necessary for your estate planning process. In that case, it’s vital to select one specializing in this area of law.
Documents to Gather for Estate Planning
Once you’ve chosen your attorney, he or she will ask for copies of all important documents (birth certificate, social security card, passport, and driver’s license) as well as information about assets such as bank account numbers.
You will also need some information about your dependents, such as their names and birthdays.
Finally, you will need to provide some medical information on the condition of any family members who might not be here tomorrow.
How To Keep Your Estate Plan Up-To-Date
Updating an estate plan is a lot like editing any other document – minor changes are often needed to make it more accurate in light of current events. Changes might include changing beneficiaries on life insurance policies to adding new trusts or modifying existing ones.
These are some examples of ways to create an estate plan that best fits your needs. There’s no one size fits all solution to this problem, so it will require careful consideration on which type(s) may work for you.
The most important thing is drafting these documents before something happens, as then they can’t be changed when emotions run high after someone has passed away. It also means having conversations about death ahead of time and what they want their loved ones left behind to do once they’re gone.
You can speak with one of our estate planning professionals to learn more about how to protect your loved ones. Contact us today to get help in creating an estate plan.