Estate Planning Mistakes (And How To Avoid Them!)
Having an estate plan can help your family avoid the stress and complications that often ensue when a person passes away. Not only can these legal and financial plans help your loved ones obtain property without going to probate court, but proper estate plans can also reduce the chances of estate litigation and help with tax liabilities. Unfortunately, unintentional errors or estate planning mistakes can prevent persons from achieving their objectives, causing countless issues and hardships for the whole family. If you are considering creating a comprehensive estate plan but want to avoid some of the more common estate planning mistakes, contact the experienced estate planning attorneys at Fleurinord Law, PLLC, at 888-904-2297 to learn more.
Mistake One: Not Having an Estate Plan
One of the most common mistakes people make when it comes to an estate plan is simply not having one. There are many who believe estate planning is only for the wealthy. However, everyone has something valuable they want to share with their family or others after they are gone. Additionally, an estate plan can ensure that your minor children are cared for according to your wishes. Finally, a properly executed estate plan will lay out your wishes in the event of illness or incapacity. Unfortunately, not having a proper estate plan risks all of these decisions being made against a person’s true wishes.
How To Avoid This Mistake
If you have not begun your estate plan, consider contacting a knowledgeable estate planning lawyer as soon as possible. A dedicated estate planning lawyer can sit down with you, go over your plan in detail, and help you determine exactly what needs to be done to make sure it is easier for your family to handle your affairs after you are gone.
Mistake Two: Only Having One Beneficiary
When creating an estate plan, you should consider having more than one beneficiary for your assets. The other beneficiary (usually referred to as a contingency beneficiary), can ensure your property and goods pass onto someone you trust if something happens to the original beneficiary you named.
How To Avoid This Mistake
As you prepare your estate plan for each account, policy, and property you own, you must indicate a primary and contingent beneficiary. Discussing the matter with an experienced estate planning lawyer can help make sure all of your assets are protected and ensure your wishes are followed after your death.
Mistake Three: Not Having a Power of Attorney
According to the American Bar Association, a Power of Attorney, both financial or medical, means that when you become incapacitated, you will have someone you trust stepping in to make decisions on your behalf. However, many people fail to name a Power of Attorney and leave these decisions to the court, which will only be able to guess as to what your wishes would have been in that circumstance.
How To Avoid This Mistake
If you do not have a Power of Attorney, consider discussing the matter with an estate planning attorney from Fleurinord Law, PLLC. Our knowledgeable lawyers can go over with you, in detail, how a Power of Attorney can help you and prepare documents to appoint a trusted person to make future financial and medical decisions for you. Our legal team can also review your whole estate plan and ensure that there are no other estate planning mistakes that can impact your future, or the future of your loved ones.
Mistake Four: Not Having a Plan for Your Digital Assets
While the idea of digital estate planning is reasonably new, today, more than ever, it is important to consider digital assets when planning for the future. According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), a digital asset is a digital representation of value. Basically, anything that is created and stored digitally, is discoverable and identifiable, and has or offers value. Digital assets include everything from social media accounts to email accounts and even online banking accounts.
Yet, while these accounts are essential to people, some may still forget to include them in their estate plans. When this happens, they risk their digital assets getting into the wrong hands.
How To Avoid This Mistake
When you prepare an estate plan, you will want to include specific details regarding your digital assets. This will ensure you name the individuals you want to handle your digital assets and that they are correctly transferred to them when it is time.
Mistake Five: Not Updating the Estate Plan
Even when people create an estate plan, they need to realize it is not something they can forget about. To ensure that an estate plan truly respects a person’s wishes, it is crucial that individuals continuously update these plans as life changes. For instance, an estate plan should be updated accordingly if there is a:
- Marriage
- Birth
- Death, or
- Divorce
How To Avoid This Mistake
Consider reviewing your estate plan every three to five years even if there have been no life events or changes. However, if there has been a major life event, make sure the estate plan is updated as soon as possible.
Mistake Six: Not Planning for Nursing Home Care
Estate plans can do much more than just ensure that a person’s assets are appropriately distributed. Properly drafted estate planning documents can also help plan for the future, such as ensuring there are enough funds for nursing home care. However, many people either do not want to address these issues in their estate plan or fail to do so and end up exhausting their financial resources to get this care later on.
How To Avoid This Mistake
As you start thinking about your estate plan, consider talking with an estate planning attorney about your future needs, including possible nursing home care. Dedicated estate planning attorneys can offer different ways to save money for this care, such as creating a special needs trust, which can help make sure you and your loved ones do not face financial hardships if you need this care in the future.
Contact Fleurinord Law, PLLC, Today and Create Your Comprehensive Estate Plan
If you are looking to create an estate plan or want to make sure you avoid some of the above estate planning mistakes, contact Fleurinord Law, PLLC, today at 888-904-2297. Our experienced estate attorneys can answer all your questions regarding estate planning, review how to avoid the more common pitfalls of estate planning, and provide you with further information on how to protect your assets.