Estate Planning Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Bredemann & Shellander, PLC

Does Estate Planning for Childless Couples is still applicable? Many people think of estate planning for people with spouses and children. Estate planning allows you the freedom to structure your wishes for your estate, your health and your death. These issues are important to everyone and don’t depend on the structure of your family. In fact, childless couples tend to have greater financial wealth that needs to be planned for. US News wrote an article titled, “To Retire Early, Don’t Have Kids”, in this article the argument is made that without children a person has far greater financial resources to retire. In order to control what happens to your hard earned wealth and assets start planning now. Estate planning for childless couples is just as important as planning for people with children or dependents.

Estate planning gives you the ability to plan your asset distribution. Working with a skilled estate planning attorney you can create a will or trust to dictate how your assets should be distributed. You may have a beloved niece or nephew or friend from high school that you would like to name as a beneficiary, be sure to include these loved ones in your estate plan. You are able to decide how much to give each beneficiary and the terms of when each person will receive his or her inheritance. It is important to work with a skilled and experienced professional so that there are no errors or gaps in your estate plan. Your estate planning attorney can also help you structure your estate plan so that your beneficiaries are as tax efficient as possible. You don’t want the bulk of your financial gift to be diminished by taxes if it can be helped. You will also want to appoint a trusted executor to help ensure your wishes are carried out when you’re gone. The role of an executor is explained by Bernard A. Krooks in his post “Understanding the Role and Responsibilities of an Executor“, “An executor (also called a “personal representative” in some states) is a person named in a will to carry out the wishes of the deceased person. An executor typically offers the will for probate, takes action to protect the assets of the estate, makes distributions of property to beneficiaries and pays the debts and taxes of the estate.” The executor you appoint will have numerous responsibilities and should be willing and capable of fulfilling these duties. You should discuss your estate plan with your executor and make sure he or she will accept the duties that come with the position.

Charitable causes can be a part of your estate plan. If you have a favorite charity or cause that is near and dear to your heart consider including it in your estate plan. It is important to have the correct information for your charity including the legal name and tax ID number. You also have the ability to make your gift to the charity restricted. This means you can designate how the money is spent by the charity. If you decide to make a limitation on the gift be sure that you do not create an undue hardship on the charity you are trying to benefit. You can also create a charitable remainder trust or CRT for short. This trust can be part of your long term estate planning. It is described at “Charitable Remainder Trusts” as, “ an irrevocable trust that generates a potential income stream for its beneficiaries, with the remainder of the donated assets eventually going to one or more charitable organizations.
Key characteristics

Potential immediate (partial) tax deduction, based on the value of the remainder gift to charity
May eliminate capital gains tax for gifts of long-term appreciated securities
Accepts many types of assets
Income may be for life or for a fixed term of no more than 20 years
Requires setup and ongoing maintenance costs

A charitable remainder trust is one example of a structure that can benefit both you and a charity of your choice if it is appropriate with the rest of your planning strategy. A CRT is not an appropriate financial vehicle for everyone so be sure to discuss this and your entire financial picture with your estate planning professional.

Healthcare decisions need to be made. In addition to your financial planning you also need to work out a healthcare plan. Should you become injured and unable to speak for yourself you should have a person in place that can make those difficult decisions for you. Normally that person would be your spouse but if your spouse predeceases you or is unable to fill this role you should have a contingency plan in place. To properly address these issues you may need to face some difficult questions such as whether you would like to be put on life support and how you feel about organ donation. You should discuss your wishes in detail with the person or persons that you nominate to make these choices and include this information in your estate plan. Your estate planning professional can help you create a durable power of attorney for health care that will include all this information. This power of attorney will allow your designated agent to make healthcare decisions for you per your wishes.

Consider your pets. You can include your pets in your estate plan. If you have a beloved pet, consider what will happen to him or her when you’re gone. If your spouse predeceases you, where will your pet go when you pass? You can include plans for your pet and financial considerations to help pay for care in your estate plan. This may help ensure that your four legged family members are taken care of after you are gone.

Estate planning is important for anyone. Whether you are married, divorced or a childless couple it is important to create a plan. By thinking ahead and putting your wishes down in a formal, legal document you are able to make your wishes known for those left behind. Don’t leave your assets and health to chance or to the state. Have the hard conversations and then work with an experienced estate planning attorney to ensure your wishes are followed.

No one wants to think about dying or becoming unable to make decisions for themselves, but as uncomfortable it is to think about, eventually everyone will die—and everyone will leave things behind. That’s why estate planning is so important. It allows you to control how your belongings are distributed and how your family is taken care of after your death.

In order for estate planning documents to carry out your wishes successfully, you need to think about and answer some tough questions while working with your estate planning attorney. It is important to note that conversations with your estate planning attorney are completely confidential and that the more information about your situation that you can provide to your attorney, the stronger the estate plan can be.

Information you should provide to your estate planning attorney include:

Do you have any other children out there?

If you have other children that you haven’t told your estate planning attorney about—tell him or her now. If your attorney doesn’t know about all of your children, it’s possible that a descendant with whom you have had no contact or whom you didn’t know existed could turn up after your death and claim part of your estate.

As technology progresses, it’s also important to think about the potential rights to your inheritance of any children that are born from eggs, sperm or fertilized embryos that you are currently storing for later use.

Were you ever married before?

If you were married previously and named your ex-spouse as a beneficiary on a pension plan or life insurance policy, he or she could inherit that money. So be sure to update your beneficiary information when big life changes happen, like if you are divorced, separated or widowed. If you are in the midst of divorce proceedings, consult with your divorce attorney before making changes to your beneficiary designations or, for that matter, any of your estate planning documents.

Also, if you were married before and your divorce was never finalized, or if you are separated, your ex-spouse could be entitled to part of your estate under your divorce decree. So be upfront with your estate planning attorney and provide as much information about your personal life as possible. Doing so could keep your estate from being subject to an expensive litigation after you die.

Who do you want to raise your kids if you die?

This is a particularly hard topic to discuss for parents. Not only is it difficult to think about leaving your children, the actual task of deciding on a guardian can be excruciating, leading to family arguments and stress. That being said, if you don’t name a guardian and the unthinkable were to happen, a judge would be the one to decide who raises your children. If you aren’t comfortable leaving that decision up to a stranger, then you need to discuss this with your attorney and name a guardian whom you trust.

If you have pets, you may also want to think about who will take them when you die. This is especially important if you have animals with long life expectancies, like horses.

What if you and your immediate family all die in a common disaster?

Since many people name their close family members in their will, the question remains: who gets the estate if the whole family dies at the same time? While unlikely, this scenario is not impossible and you should plan for this just in case.

If you don’t come up with a plan for this scenario, state law will determine who is the next of kin for each person who died. If you would rather your estate go to a close friend or charity instead of a second cousin twice removed that you’ve never met, you should include them in in your estate planning documents.

When do you want to be taken off life support?

As medical technology advances, people with injuries that would have killed them in the past can be put on life support. This can put a large financial and emotional burden on loved ones. For many people, the thought of being kept alive by machines with no hope of rehabilitation sounds like a nightmare, but in some cases family members can find it difficult to make the decision to take someone they love off of life support.

You should discuss and if appropriate, sign health care directives so your wishes can be made clear if you are unable to speak for yourself. You should also talk with your loved ones and make sure they know what you want to happen in case you become incapacitated.

Having these conversations now, although uncomfortable, can ensure that your wishes are carried out in the way you had planned. For example, if you find out that your son or daughter is not comfortable making the decision to take you off life support, you will know that he or she isn’t the right person to step in for you if that decision needs to be made and you can name someone else in your health care directive.

What are your passwords, usernames and answers to security questions?

In our increasingly technology-driven world, most people have a lot of information stored online. You may have online accounts for bank accounts, social media, email and other important assets.

Create a list of these accounts and their login information and then make a plan for how you want the person to whom you are leaving access to be able to access the accounts. Some people choose to leave this information in a safe deposit box, but that isn’t always the best option because many banks won’t allow anyone access to the safe deposit box until the deceased box owner’s will is probated.

A better option is placing the information in a fire proof safe or lock box at home and then provide your family member or your attorney with the combination or the location of the key. There are also some online storage services that allow you to keep all your passwords in one place.

If you have questions about estate planning in Arizona or Wiscosnin, please reach out to an experienced attorney. At Bredemann & Shellander PLC (LINK), we specialize in estate planning and pride ourselves on taking the time to understand your unique situation so we can guide you through the estate planning process. Give us a call at 480-998-0999 or schedule a consultation online (LINK).

The article above is intended for education purposes only and should not be considered legal advice. If you need legal advice, contact an attorney regarding your situation.