Are You In The 33%?

Are you one of the 33% of Americans who have an estate plan? That’s right, only 33% of all Americans have left direction as to where their assets should go after they pass away. 

Estate planning really IS for everyone.  Although thinking about death and what will happen to our things once we are gone is not something we love to do, science has proven that 100% of us will die at some point. If you leave no plan for your family, you may not be harmed, but your loved ones will be left with the burden of figuring out your affairs while trudging through a costly and hectic probate process.

Without an estate plan, you give a court permission to decide who gets your assets and who will raise your children. If a court decided to divide your assets amongst your family members, would you trust all of your family members to handle these gifts responsibly? A trust can help in this situation, as a trust allows you to dictate how assets can be used to make sure untrustworthy or financially irresponsible loved ones do not mishandle their newly-acquired assets. Do your loved ones know where to find your assets? It is important to make sure this information is available and accessible to your loved ones to prevent a wild goose chase after you pass away.

What about real estate – do you own valuable real estate that you hope to pass down through your family? Or let’s say you own valuable or cherished personal property such as antique furniture or family heirlooms. Family turmoil often results from a failure to designate specific beneficiaries for meaningful personal property.

Furthermore, who are the beneficiaries on your retirement and other financial accounts? Are these beneficiary designations up to date?  If you have gone through a divorce, have you removed your former spouse as a beneficiary? If not, your former spouse will still receive these assets even if he or she has no other rights to your other assets by virtue of the divorce.

In addition to distributing your assets, your estate plan will nominate individuals to make medical and financial decisions on your behalf if you become incapable of doing so. This process can become very tricky and stressful for your loved ones if you fail to appoint power of attorney.

For many reasons outlined in this recent piece from USA Today, dying without an estate plan can be disastrous for those you leave behind. Establishing a basic estate plan is one of the greatest gifts that we can all give our loved ones.