Making a comprehensive plan on how your beneficiaries will inherit property will give you and your loved ones the peace of mind that often seems elusive. Estate planning is one thing you cannot ignore. There are several ways to do this, including writing a will that states how your assets will be distributed. You can also set up a trust, regardless of how much wealth you have accumulated over time.
Ever wondered how many people actually have taken on estate planning in America? Where do you fall in the statistics? The following post explains what is going on and what you can do to make a difference for your family:
Half of Americans Don’t Have a Will. Here’s How to Fix That for Your Family
People make a lot of excuses to put off planning for the inevitable. You may be fearful about your own mortality, or think you don’t have enough assets to need an estate plan — or perhaps you just think that things will change so much before your death that you and your spouse can delay making a plan.
But dying without a will or more extensive plan only brings further grief to your family. “You leave heirs in a lurch and risk changing the family dynamic” — and not for the better, says Anchorage, Alaska, financial planner Michael Branham.
Without a will, decisions about who will administer your estate, who will be the guardian of your minor children, and who will inherit your money fall to a local probate court, which is bound by state laws, says Cincinnati estate planning attorney David Bross. Read more at Time…
You don’t have to put off estate planning any longer. It may actually save you lots of trouble later on.
You can set up a trust for your beneficiaries and choose the one that works well for you. The following post describes why you should consider a trust:
Six reasons you should consider a trust
If you haven’t stopped to consider how a trust may help you pass your wishes and wealth on, you could be making a critical estate planning mistake. Especially for individuals with substantial assets, protecting wealth for future generations should be top of mind.
“People often fail to appreciate the power a trust can have as part of a well-crafted estate plan, but that can be a costly mistake,” says Rodney Weaver, estate planning specialist at Fidelity. “Trusts are flexible and powerful tools that can be used to gain greater control over how they pass their wealth to future generations.”
A trust is a legal structure that contains a set of instructions on exactly how and when to pass assets to trust beneficiaries. Read more at Fidelity…
With a trust, you can be as detailed as you need so that there is no room for ambiguity. This will eliminate unnecessary problems for your loved ones when the time comes.
Many people imagine that they have to be extremely wealthy to set up a trust. The amount of assets you have should not limit you, as the following post describes:
How to Set up a Trust Fund If You’re Not Rich
If you’ve heard of trust funds but don’t know what they are or how they work, you’re not alone. Many people know just one key fact about trust funds: they’re set up by the ultra-wealthy as a way to protect passing on significant sums of money to family, friends or entities (charities, for example) after they pass away. Only part of the conventional wisdom is true though. Trust funds are designed to allow a person’s money to continue to be useful well after they pass away, but trusts aren’t useful only for ultra high-net-worth individuals. Middle-class people can use trust funds as well, and setting one up isn’t entirely out of financial reach. Read more at Investopedia…
Estate planning involves the future transfer of assets, and this should be done in accordance with the laws of the state. It is therefore very important to hire the services of an experienced attorney.
If you need expert advice in estate planning in Charlotte, NC, Meek Law Firm is the company to work with. Jonathan Meek has assisted many people with these important legal matters and he can help you as well. Call (704) 848-6335 or use the contact form on the website to schedule a consultation appointment. We look forward to hearing from you.