Most frequent questions and answers
To make the process as smooth and simple as possible, we follow the following steps.
You choose what type of Estate Plan and Add On’s you would like
You purchase your Plan
We send you a link: You submit your information so we can personalize your Estate Plan
We confirm the details
We send you your digital Estate Plan to be printed and Signed
This process works well and is simple to complete. Now is the time to put these protections in place and to bless your loved ones by planning ahead.
Yes, Adults 18 and over should have some safeguards in place.
If something terrible happened to you, who would:
Make Healthcare Decisions for you?
Pay Your bills and access your accounts?
Communicate with Insurance companies?
Look after or distribute your property?
Address many other crucial matters?
Important legal planning can save you and your loved ones from heartache, uncertainty, and completely avoidable expenses during a difficult time.
Probate is the administrative process that involves the court and typically will take one of two paths: it can either be handled through a process called independent administration where the
court has limited involvement, or it can be handled through dependent
administration which involves the court supervising most aspects of the process.
This process can be time-consuming and expensive. An estate that goes through the Probate process is public information, so it is not private.
Assets that go through the Probate process may also be eligible to creditors.
Establishing a Trust, is a good way to avoid the Probate process, keep your details private, and put protections in place that protect your assets in a variety of ways.
This is a great question.
Without the proper legal planning, the court will be involved to decide who will have the authority to step into your parenting shoes if needed. This may not be who you would choose. Planning ahead can also avoid family disagreements on who should be the primary caregiver.
See below in Legal Descriptions on “Minor Children Protections”.
When an individual turns 18, they become an adult. As parents, we do not have the same authority to step in and help our adult children, unless they specifically plan ahead.
Without the proper planning, as a parent, you would not be allowed to help pay their bills, visit with a hospital or insurance company to help them in a medical emergency.
Our young adult plans help place these important “just-in-case” documents in place. If an accident or emergency happened your hands would not be tied and you could help out your adult child in their time of need.
Having a special needs loved one creates unique challenges and opportunities others don’t have to plan for. Customizing an Estate Plan and taking measures to protect your Special Needs family member is important.
Did you know:
- Receiving an inheritance may disqualify a person with Special Needs from the services they receive?
- There are ways to set up a Guardianship succession plan without court involvement and a Trustee to supervise finances after a caregiver is gone?
Generous and good intentions can have very costly consequences if they are not properly structured.
Let us know that you have a special needs loved one and we can help you plan accordingly.
Definitions
Legal Definitions
Is the legal process required to transfer ownership of assets from a deceased individual to a living beneficiary. This can be a complex and time-consuming process. Not only time-consuming but costly as well.
A well-rounded estate plan can avoid this process as well as place other protections in place.
Put your mind at ease and plan ahead. This is a gift for your loved ones.
A will is a tool used to designate how you would like your estate to be handled after you are gone. This tool designates who you would like to inherit your estate. It also allows you to make gifts to charitable organizations. Having a will in place makes certain your wishes are known and followed.
If you die without a will, dying intestate, the court will decide how your estate is handled according to the laws of intestate during probate.
A revocable trust is a tool used during your lifetime to hold assets. You can place property inside the trust and take it out of the trust as you wish while you are living. After you are gone, your estate would be distributed to your heirs as you have designated without the need for probate. Using a revocable living trust can avoid probate, which can be a complex, costly, and time-consuming process. Using a trust can also help you avoid estate taxes. Avoiding the probate process will also keep how you handle your estate confidential, keeping your private matters private.
You can include protections for heirs long after you are gone which may include:
Divorce Protections-if your heir gets a divorce their inheritance is off the table to their ex-spouse
Spend Thrift Protections-
Drug/Alcohol Abuse Protections:
Special Needs Protections:
You have the power to change or cancel the revocable trust at any time during your lifetime.
An irrevocable trust is a tool used during your lifetime to hold and protect assets. These are sometimes known as Asset Protection Trusts or Medicaid Trusts. This includes providing creditor protections, tax protections, and avoiding probate.
Benefits to an Irrevocable Trust are:
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The Irrevocable Trust cannot be changed or canceled.
A pour-over will is used in conjunction with the creation of a trust. It is a tool that makes certain that your trust is fully funded after you are gone. If at your time of death, your estate owned things that were not part of your trust, this tool scoops everything up and places it inside your trust to be handled according to your trust rules.
Having a trust in place is a great way to protect assets, streamline inheritances and put protections into place for those heirs. The assets, however, must be placed into the trust to do any good. We like to say that your trust is like a little red wagon. You are in control of who pulls the little red wagon, it could be you and your spouse, or someone else you appoint as trustee. If your wagon is empty it does you no good, so it is important to place your desired assets into the trust, or make certain after you are gone(a pour-over will) will place things into your trust.
Included in your Trust package, we include directing on helping you correctly place assets into your trust so that it is fully funded and provides the protection you desire.
The Financial Power of Attorney designates an “attorney in fact” who you choose to step into your shoes and handle your financial affairs for you become incapacitated. This includes paying bills, handling business affairs, investment accounts, DMV paperwork etc.
The Medical Power of Attorney designates an “attorney in fact” who you choose to step into your shoes and handle your medical affairs if you become incapacitated. This includes visiting with your doctor, seeking second opinions, etc.
Having these in place can remove the court process of guardianship if anything were to happen to you.
A “living will” which proclaims your wishes on whether you want to be kept alive by artificial means if there is a legal determination that all “hope” of recovery is gone.
This lets your voice be heard in a situation when you cannot speak for yourself.
Having this in place is a gift to loved ones and your doctor to take off the table the guessing game on what your wishes are in this health situation. It relieves the burden on the family on making a difficult decision and wondering if they are making the “right” decision.
This allows whomever you designate to speak to a physician, insurance company, or medical facility, pick up prescriptions and transfer medical information if needed.
Information for your loved ones after you are gone. Including designating a loved one who would handle these affairs for you as well as relating your wishes regarding burial and funeral decisions.
One of the best ways to protect your family is by planning ahead. If you are on a date night with your spouse and you get hit by a car, what will happen to your children? If the crash rendered you incapacitated for a time or caused your death who would step into your parenting shoes?
If you had no plan in place, the court would step in a decide who could take care of your children. This would often be after a stay with CPS until the court proceedings were completed.
This can all be avoided by having you designate who you would like to step in your parenting shoes for physical guardianship of your children, financial guardianship, and healthcare control over your minor children. You can designate the same or different person/people for these powers. You can also designate who you DON’T want to have care of your children.
Having this in place provides an opportunity for stability in an already heartbreaking situation. It also allows you to appoint the best caretaker you choose for your children.
Included in these Minor Children Protections is an All About Me Booklet. It is a digital guide about each of your children that gives insight into your child in the event someone else has to step into your roll as a parent. It includes health information, and who their teacher, physician, and dentist are. What activities they are involved in. Who their friends are and what their likes and dislikes are as well as other important personal information only a parent knows.