Financial Planning Corner
By Nick Rogers on July 17, 2023
Why Estate Planning Matters
Proper estate planning ensures the preservation of your wealth – and its intended purpose. The best planning helps keep your family secure and safe, long after you’re gone. Poor (or no) planning can expose your family to years of struggling with legal proceedings, unnecessary taxes, probate fees, and more.
Reasons Why an Up-To-Date Estate Plan is Essential
- Protect Your Loved Ones
- Protect Your Assets
- Minimize Estate Tax
- Appoint Appropriate Guardians & Fiduciaries
- Specify Healthcare Wishes
What Happens if You Have an Out-of-Date Plan… Or No Plan At All?
Common Outcomes from Poor Estate Planning
Your Estate Gets Stuck in Probate
If you die either with an inaccurate will or without a will (also know as dying intestate) your estate will end up in probate. Probate is often a long, costly, and emotionally exhausting process for your family. A court could distribute your financial estate and appoint guardianship of minor children in ways you did not intend.
Your Listed Beneficiaries Are Not Accurate
Outdated beneficiary designation on retirement plans and life insurance policies are one of the most common pitfalls of outdated planning. Because these assets often represent the largest portion of an estate, passing to the wrong beneficiary can have devasting consequences.
You Have Outdated Fiduciaries
Fiduciaries (the people you appoint as your trustee, executor, healthcare agent, etc.) play the most important role in executing your estate plan. Changes in relationships, health, and/or location are a natural part of life, and outdated fiduciary appointments can leave the wrong people in charge of making critical decisions on your behalf.
How We Help
Often, we find that clients have paid little attention to ensuring that estate plans are effective and up-to-date. We will help you to understand your existing plan. Through our new partnership with Vanilla (www.justvanilla.com), we use Vanilla’s software to organize and visualize how your plan works, where your money is going, and any potential opportunities – without headaches, confusion, or legal cost to you. We present your complete financial balance sheet to you organized by where your assets live so you can see how assets flow from one entity to the next. We will show your assets vs liabilities, what’s liquid vs illiquid, in your estate vs out-of-your estate, and your potential estate taxes. After organizing and reviewing all your existing planning documents and situation, we will present planning opportunities based on your unique circumstances. Please reach out to us to discuss your estate plan.
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