Very often, people express lack of concern about estate planning because they believe they do not have much to leave behind in the way of assets, but that’s just not true. Regardless of your age or financial status, it is important to make sure that your assets are secured through proper estate planning. In reading this post, you’ll learn why everyone should have a will regardless of socioeconomic status. Keep scrolling for more.
What Is Estate Planning?
Estate planning is the process of designating who receives your assets or executes responsibilities at the time of your death or incapacitation. Regardless of social status or age, when you develop an estate or a will, you get to decide how your assets are distributed and you ensure that your wishes are executed to your desires.
Take Inventory
Before you say you do not really own anything of value and are not concerned with creating a Will, I encourage you to take inventory of your assets.
Very often, we own or are responsible for a lot more than we realize. Taking inventory of our belongings gives us a better understanding of items or valuables that could potentially require further instructions for handling at the time of incapacitation or death. Here is a list of things to consider when taking inventory.
• Your Home
• Your vehicle
• Collectibles, sacred items, or heirlooms
• Checking or savings accounts
• Life insurance
• Business ownership (this is especially important because your Will can dictate the succession of that business & how that business runs and operates should you pass away)
Why Is Estate Planning Important?
Regardless of how much money you have, there are a few factors that should encourage you to establish a will. Remember, everyone’s circumstances are different, so it is important to start the process by having a conversation with an attorney. That being said, let’s dive a bit deeper into a few different factors to further uncover the importance of estate planning.
Plan For Your Minor Children
If you are a parent and you care about the well-being of your minor children, having a Will in place will establish what your wishes are for your minor children at your time of death. It allows you to have an active say in the guardianship, childcare, and overall welfare of your minor children.
Control Over Will Executor
When you establish a Will, you have the option to choose a trusted individual to execute your wishes. This is important because lack of an Executor can lead to arguments, court dates, and families being torn apart over the distribution of assets. When you are clear about who you want to carry out your wishes and where you want everything to go, you can avoid the confusion and lessen the time of Probate.
Simplify Probate
Probate is a legal term used to describe formal court proceedings that ultimately decide if the Will is valid and how assets are distributed. With or without a Will, Probate is inevitable. Having a Will in place cuts out the red tape, stops confusion, and allows a smooth transition at the time death.
Funeral Arrangements
It is common for families to be disappointed because the funeral arrangements received for loved ones are not necessarily what the deceased would have wanted. Having a written document that states your funeral wishes prevents any gray area around your desired arrangements.
Manage Digital Assets
This is a big one! Now that we are in the age of social media, you can include in your Will how you want your digital assets to be distributed and who should be responsible for managing those digital assets. So many times, I've heard people complain or state their thoughts about how Facebook should be used at the time of death. The cool thing is that you can use your Will to dictate how you want your digital assets to be handled at the time of death. Depending on your wishes, your Facebook could stay up as a memorial or be disabled.
You can also determine how other digital assets are handled such as email, computer data, digital banking, and music. Login info should be provided to a designated person with the specific instructions on how and when it should be used. Just be sure to put sensitive information in a special place or with someone you trust like your attorney, family or a close friend.
Stay Connected!
I hope you understand that regardless of whether you are extremely wealthy or not so wealthy, it's important to have a Will in place. If you have questions about this, or if you're interested in getting started with establishing a Will, go ahead and send us an email. We are here, willing to listen, ready to help you in the best way we can. We hope that today you're motivated to do something that protects your legacy. No matter what you're doing in life, you're building a legacy, and it deserves to be protected!
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