What happens to your assets when you pass on? Without a binding legal document stating how your assets are to be divided, your local governing body will determine how they are distributed.
Don't leave your family with nothing in the event of your untimely demise.
Meet with a lawyer and have them draft a detailed document to dictate your last wishes.
Protect your loved ones and avoid contentious family debates.
Estate planning is a good idea for a person who is terminally ill, but it is also a good idea for anyone who hasn't already drafted a document detailing how their properties will be divided upon their death.
Let's review the facts! If You Don't Decide How to Divide Your Assets, The State Will.
This sounds absurd, but it is true.
Without a schematic to distribute your assets, the state's intestacy laws kick in.
The state will determine how your assets are distributed and who inherits your property.
Believe it or not, your children also fall into this category.
If you do not name a guardian for your minor child, the state will decide who gets custody of your child.
If you are a parent, the possibility of your child in the hands of a stranger should be mortifying.
Make sure you plan for the future, because your death has the potential to impact the people you love on several levels.
Estate Planning Doesn't Just Benefit the Wealthy.
An organized will and estate plan benefits all families, including households headed by single mothers, older siblings, grandparents, or another type of nontraditional guardian.
There are many people who live in non-traditional family units, but state law still appropriates property and child custody based upon the traditional nuclear family.
If you do not draft a document to pass your assets on to the people that really matter to you, the state's intestacy laws will distribute them by using a framework that doesn't describe your family.
Estate plans also beneficial for your children.
If your children inherit your assets through the state's intestacy laws, their inheritance is vulnerable to any creditors they may have.
Outright inheritance is treated under the law as another source of property or earnings.
These funds can be lost to lawsuit, divorce, and creditors, but if you leave your children your assets in a trust, you will give your kids a level of protection.
In addition to protecting your money from creditors, a trust fund ensures that your children do not blow their inheritance due to substance abuse problems or poor judgment.
You can also appoint a person you trust to make the monetary decisions for your children until they get older.
The State Will Not Let You Donate.
No surprise here! State intestacy laws do not leave any room for charitable donations.
If you want to leave money to a charity upon your death, you need an attorney specialized in estate planning to draft a solid document for your assets.
Hire a skilled lawyer to help you navigate the process.
The sooner your start planning for the future, the more time you will have to make a calm, rational decision.
You can always adjust how your property dispersed as you go, but if you wait too long, you will never get a chance to set up an estate plan.
Don't trust your property to the state; make the best decisions for your family.