Upcoming Estate Planning Events

An estate plan determines how an individual’s assets will be managed and distributed after passing. Ensuring the security of your loved one’s future financial situation can be impacted by your decisions made today. Estate planning is the preparation of your asset base tasks to manage your assets in the event of incapacitation or death. Preparation tasks include creating a will (a legal document that provides clear instructions on how to handle the individual’s property and custody of minor children), establishing trusts, naming an executor and beneficiaries, and setting up funeral arrangements. One of the best things you can do for yourself and your loved ones is to create a will. Wills and trusts are designed to safeguard your family’s future. Assets can include cars, houses, stocks, life insurance, pensions, and debt. Estate planning is also important if you are looking to fund your descendant’s education. To preserve family wealth and/or ensure the survival of your family, estate planning is essential.

Prepare for your future today! Making the most of your retired life takes the effort of starting now. Retirement planning will set your future self up for successful, more enjoyable retirement years. Not every individual’s retirement plan is the same since we are all unique. Others may have different needs or goals. Determine your wants, needs, and goals. Consider your timeline until retirement, estimate your expenses, calculate required after-tax returns, and consider estate planning. Stevenson, Smith Hood, and Knudson P.C. provide complete financial guidance and wealth management planning to help clients effectively manage and preserve their wealth. We provide information pertaining to investment planning, insurance, and retirement accounts to help our clients achieve their financial goals.

Asset protection is an area of the law designed to handle the protection of your assets against future creditors. Asset protection planning is intended to avoid having to pay existing loan obligations or creditors. Asset protection law is structured around the fact that whatever you own, your creditors can come after whatever you own if you do not take the important steps to protect those assets. Asset protection is often confused with estate planning even though they are drastically different. Asset protection allows for less restrictive rules as individuals will have over assets. This includes management of those assets and designating the beneficiaries.

While planning for the care of an individual with special needs certainly tops the list of emotionally-charged topics, a well-designed estate plan can ease the minds of special need’s caretakers. What happens if you are unable to care or provide for this loved one someday? Life is unpredictable so preparing yourself for the day you are incapable of taking care of someone else is crucial. It is wise to take action in special needs planning to ensure the proper care for your loved one. Every special needs individual possesses different needs. Planning accordingly for them will help you get started with your plan. This includes specialized treatment that includes therapy, housing, education, medication, adaptive equipment, in-home care, and other services. Through a specialized estate plan, you can provide for your child without endangering the child’s eligibility for government and private benefits programs. Protect the child’s financial interests today as well as their future needs is by establishing an estate plan.

Do you want your family to receive assets you have established over your lifetime? Do you want to transfer your assets to your loved ones following your death? Living trusts are designed just for these reasons. A living trust will prevent the need for probate. Save your family of the frustration that occurs with the court process of probate. A revocable living trust is part of an estate plan that will provide benefits to your heirs. A revocable living trust still allows you to manage your assets while you are alive.

Even though the thought of becoming terminally ill is grim, it doesn’t discard the importance of deciding what you choose to do in this situation. You never know what life will throw your way. Being prepared will help ease the situation and put your mind at ease. A living will is broken up into areas including terminal illness, injury, and permanent unconsciousness.  A living will is a legal document describing whether or not you would like to be placed on life support in the event of becoming terminally ill. If you are currently living with a terminal illness or are about to have surgery, it is advised to have a living will. If you are currently in these conditions and do not have a living will, urgently complete yours today.

Imagine being severely injured in a car accident, and you cannot speak or move. Panic sets in and you ask yourself what do I do? When there are medical circumstances beyond your control, a Healthcare Power of Attorney should step in. If you are prepared and have planned your will and your healthcare power of attorney (HCPA), this process will be made easy. Having no question about what you want will ease your mind and the minds of your loved ones. Part of proper estate planning comes down to planning your will and your healthcare power of attorney (HCPA). The healthcare power of attorney is designed to empower an individual of your choosing to make decisions about your medical care. It is crucial to choose your HCPA wisely as they will legally be able to make medical decisions on your behalf.

Probate is the legal process through which the deceased person’s remaining property is distributed and all final debts and taxes are paid. When a loved one passes away, the event can become emotionally draining and difficult to process. Settling your loved one’s final affairs is one of the last things you want to deal with. The process of probate is not as bad as you may think. Probate can sound intimidating but in reality, if you have prepared and equipped yourself with the knowledge, the process can become less stressful. Gaining the help of an experienced advisor will help smooth this process further and more efficiently.

Preparing for the event of your death is sorrowful to think about but an essential part of instructing your loved ones on what to do. In the end, it is your life, your decision. A letter of last instruction, also known as death instructions, is an estate planning document that clearly communicates the wants and wishes following the individual’s death for trustworthy family members to follow. A few items that should be included in your death instructions are personal, business, and financial contacts. Include the location of legal forms and documents, usernames and passwords, information of outstanding debts, beneficiaries, memorial service, and funeral plans. Ensure that a trustworthy family member(s) has knowledge of where this document is and how to access it.

A will, also known as a testament, is a legal document composed to communicate an individual’s wishes as to how their property should be distributed after the event of their death. Will documents also include information on the care of your children if they are minors. This legal document is the foundation of an estate plan. A will is to be managed properly until final distribution. Contact our law firm for more information and professional help conducting your will.