Mother’s Day is coming up soon, and the holiday, as with every year, is a chance to show the women in your lives how much you appreciate them. With Mother’s Day in mind, let’s look at some important estate planning tools that will benefit mothers especially.
Considerations
When you’re estate planning, your first consideration should be your family. If you have kids, how will they be taken care of after you die? Will they receive your assets? Who will be their guardian? The conversation surrounding estate planning isn’t always easy. After all, it starts with the question of illness, incapacitation, and/or death. However difficult, it is still a conversation you have to have. And, if you haven’t started yet, do it as soon as possible.
Your Kids
As a mom, your kids are your number-one priority (sorry, spouses). Luckily, there are plenty of tools in estate planning that allow you to keep your kids safe, even after you die. The questions of what will happen to your assets and who will become any minor children’s guardian(s) are both paramount in estate planning.
Assets
There are many ways that assets can be transferred when you are estate planning. You want your kids to have what you have after you die, and you can accomplish that through tools like:
- A Trust. This three-party fiduciary relationship allows you to skip probate court when transferring your assets to your kids. A trust is relatively easy to set up, and there are many different kids. people might believe that trusts are only for the wealthy, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. These financial tools are useful for everyone.
- A Will. At the very least, you should have a will. The last will and testament is a final expression of what you want done with your assets after you die (i.e. transferred to your kids). Note, a will has to go through the probate process. Also, you do not want to “DIY” your will, as that can lead to a lot of expensive problems down the road. Always execute a will under the guidance of a qualified attorney.
FYI, it is not advised that you name kids as beneficiaries of your lie insurance, as that can turn into a legally complex situation. After all, minors cannot directly receive life insurance proceeds, and the state will have to appoint a legal guardian if you have not done so. This is a lengthy, costly process. You’re better off naming your spouse as a beneficiary, or, if you have grown kids, one of them.
Guardianship
If you have minor children, you will need to select a guardian for them. As mentioned, it can be a lengthy, costly process for the state to appoint a guardian, and they may not choose who you would choose. When drawing up guardianship paperwork, think carefully about who will best take care of your kids’ day-to-day needs. Talk with your proposed guardian before finalizing anything.
End-of-Life Wishes
When estate planning, you also need to answer a few questions about what you want done if you are unable to communicate your wishes to doctors and nurses. Do you want to be resuscitated? Do you have any religious views that might require special care? Completing a healthcare directive will allow you to lay out these wishes in advance, making them valid even if you are too incapacitated to communicate them.
Additionally, appointing a trusted individual to serve as your power of attorney is also a wise option. This person can make decisions on your behalf, again if you’re too sick to do so yourself. Picking a P.O.A. will ensure that end-of-life decisions, both finance- and healthcare-related, are made by someone with your best interests at heart.
When you’re a mom, you have an enormous amount of responsibility. Don’t think of estate planning as adding to that burden. Instead, think of it as safeguarding you and your family for years to come. Meeting with the right attorney will make this process easier that attempting to do it alone. Contact WFP now: https://wfplaw.com