What is a Last Will and Testament?

Why You Need To Do A Trust For Your KidsIf you have been listening to my radio shows or podcasts, and reading my blogs, you will know that I have focused a lot on estate planning for retirees, or soon to be retirees, and how to protect their stuff and their family from the issues that they face. These include care costs, eventual probate expenses and taxes. For most of my career I have been dedicated to working through those issues. In fact, my law firm exists because I watched my own grandfather go through all of this money paying for care. Sadly he was battling Alzheimers disease and spent many years in a nursing home. Having spent so many years working on elder law issues, weve become to know how to properly plan for these issues. Working With Young FamiliesRecently weve been working with folks from a young family demographic. My wife and I recently redid our own personal estate plan because our children are getting older, and there are changes in our financial situation too. It is necessary every few years to see if our estate plan does what we want it to do. Most of us learn from our experiences and the situations we find ourselves in, and how to respond the next time. Thats one of the one of the great things about life because we get to learn from mistakes and challenges. Ive been through some challenges with some families that are similarly situated to mine, when has thrown them a curveball. Many of them have had to deal with injuries, disabilities and deaths, as well as unexpected situations. This has made me realise the importance of needing to plan when it comes to younger families. We actually have an entire webinar series for younger families, called Five Secrets to Protect Your Family. We teach you the things you need to know to protect your kids from the cradle to college. Raising Good HumansAs parents of young children, I think our primary job is to raise good humans who will be happy and self sufficient. Hopefully they will find careers that theyre passionate about and a spouse they love and are happy with. Eventually they will have their own kids and it is my job to prepare them for that. I think we also need to accept that our duty of raising good humans who will outlive us, is something we need to plan for too. We need to also face the reality that although it would be devastating if both parents passed away suddenly, there needs to be plan in place for the kids to be taken care of.A Simple Will Is Not EnoughUnfortunately, most young parents of young kids dont actually plan for this. Most young families only have a will which will name who gets the stuff when they pass away. Most young families often dont have many assets, so it is important for them to buy life insurance. You would definitely need life insurance or a retirement account. While it is not enough to only have a Will, it can be used to do some planning. You would need to name an executor who will administer your estate, and guardians for your kids. A guardian would essentially step into your shoes if you pass away. However, guardianship ends when your child is 18 years of age. While they are considered an adult at age 18, leaving money to your 18 year old could be a big mistake for many reasons. I know that people will advise you that you only need a simple Will, which states that everything is left to your spouse and then to your kids. If your kid is a minor when they inherit money, your kid will get their money in a Uniform Transfer to Minors Act Account. This means that somebody else would be in control of the money, until the kid turns 21. However, after the age of 21, your kid is on their own. If I think about it, if at the age of 21 I had been left an inheritance of a million dollars, I would not have make good decisions with spending the money. I dont believe most 21 year old kids would know what to do either. This illustrates why it is not enough to just have a Will, and why one needs to plan for all eventualities.Why You Should Create a Trust for Your ChildI would encourage you to create trusts. The Trust has certain terms and conditions to determine what will happen with the money. Wills have to go through probate which is the court administration process for administering the Will. What happens when somebody passes away with a Will, the executor cant do anything until the judge allows him and it becomes a court process. The Will is then mailed to the beneficiaries, with details of what theyre allowed to have. This can take weeks or months to find out what the deceased owned. The probate process is a time consuming task and also expensive, and we advise to avoid it if possible. This is exactly why we suggest using a trust.Divorce is a Financial ThreatRather than giving the money to your kids outright, the money is held in a separate trust until they reach the age which you determine is suitable. This is known as an underage trust and it protects the kids from their own poor decisions as a youngster. When your child reaches the age you have agreed upon which is often 25 or 30, for them to receive their inheritance, the trust then terminates. However, you need to consider protecting your kids from the next potential issue and the biggest financial threat for adults in their 20s and 30s, which is divorce. What I like to do is for my kid to become a trustee on the trust. Were not distributing the money so it doesnt become a marital asset. It would also be protected from the general creditors, divorces and lawsuits. The money is held in trust for my kid until they turn 25 and can get control of the trust. This is effective estate planning and is more important than having a simple Will. It often happens that most people just do beneficiary designations on their life insurance policies. When the parent passes away, the kids get their money on their 21st birthday. This is not a good idea and it is better for that money to be in a trust. Having a good estate plan in place helps you to do your job as a parent and raise good people.Register for our Webinar for Young Families This is all possible when you start with education because educated decisions are better decisions. Thats why we offer a free webinar called Five Secrets to Protect your family. You can find it sechlerlawfirm.com/workshops. We teach you a lot of the things you need to know about how trusts work. We also share other important information you need to know. Join us!

Estate Plan Check-UpsEffective estate planning is personal, and its more than just deciding who to leave your assets to once you die.  Effective estate planning  is a comprehensive process that encompasses pre-need planning: health care decisions, financial management, and maintaining a delicate balance between independence and security.  Like your preventive doctor visits, you should regularly check in on your estate plan to ensure it fits your current needs, considers and plans for potential future care needs, and will give effect to your wishes now and in the future. Generally, estate planning involves creating a last will and testament, possibly a revocable trust, possibly an asset protection trust or a supplemental needs trust for a loved one who is unable to manage finances or may be vulnerable to abuse or exploitation.  Estate planning also involves important advanced directives, such as a durable financial power of attorney, a health care power of attorney, and a living will.   Creating an estate plan, or getting my affairs in order, tends to be an item on our to-do lists, for us to get done and move on to the next thing. However, while it may not be something you have to look at every month, or even every year, once your initial estate plan is completed, it is something that needs to be reviewed with some regularity.Most people get an annual physical when they are healthy, not when they are sick. They do this because they want to proactively spot any issues that could cause them to become ill in the future. The same concept can and should be applied when it comes to reviewing and updating your estate plan. Your estate plan may be healthy now, but you want to make sure that it stays that way by checking it regularly, to ensure it fits your needs and family circumstances, protects and provides for you now, and  accomplishes your goals and wishes in the future. Editors Note: This article is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be legal advice.  This article was submitted by Ashley Day, Esq.  Ashley Day Law, LLC.  Reach her at 251-277-3377. 

PaperworkPaperworkWhat Should I keep? Sorting through the paperwork of a deceased loved one is a daunting task. It is important to know what to keep and what to discard. Here are some helpful tips.  Deeds, Titles and Vehicle RegistrationsDeeds and titles to property may not be obvious on the face of the document so it is important to read everything carefully. Keep anything that has a legal description (Lots and Blocks or Metes and Bounds), a vehicle identification number (VIN), contains the word title, deed of trust or warranty deed.  ReceiptsSome property does not have a title such as a tractor, farm equipment or certain recreational equipment. In such cases, keep the purchase receipts for this type of property. It will be useful if there is a question about ownership, the value of the property or the date it was purchased.  Bank RecordsSave all bank records and statements. These will be valuable if a dispute arises about ownership of an account, payments or distributions made from the account and to whom. Shred unused checks.  Retirement AccountsSave all statements and records pertaining to the decedents individual retirement accounts (IRAs), 401(k) plans or pension plans.  Life Insurance PoliciesSave all life insurance policies.  Social Security Paperwork and Earning StatementsSave information about the decedents Social Security account or earning statements.  Cancel the Decedents Credit Card Accounts Nowadays, identity theft is a huge issue. Contact Experian, Equifax and TransUnion to report the death of your loved one. Request the credit report be flagged as Deceased. Being proactive prevents a lot of hassle later on.  Cancel all credit cards in the deceased persons name. Also, there may be questions about the credit card purchase of certain items or property. Save credit card statements until probate of the decedents estate is complete.  Documents that contain the decedents Social Security NumberIf you find any documents with the decedents Social Security Number and you make a determination that the documents are not going to be saved, make sure it all gets shredded.  Tax RecordsKeep the decedents tax records. There may be a question about real property valuation, exemption or other issues that can be resolved by information in a tax return.   Loan PaperworkKeep all loan paperwork including loans on property or a loan the decedent made to a relative, friend, individual or organization. This may show that there is outstanding debt or money owed to the decedents estate.  Business AgreementsSometimes people have business agreements that have been documented in writing. Such agreements may contain a succession plan, what should happen with business equipment or property, or what should happen upon the death of a business partner.  Military RecordsSave all military records just in case there are benefits owed to a survivor such as a spouse, dependent child or disabled child. Some benefits are dependent upon verification of military service during war time which occurred prior to the advent of computer records. This includes photographs taken during wartime.  Birth and Marriage CertificatesSave all birth and marriage certificates. Again, for certain benefits for survivors, such certificates may be needed.  Timeframe for Keeping PaperworkIt is advisable to keep these potentially important documents until the estate of the decedent is settled, at a minimum. Otherwise keep them at least seven years and longer if possible, especially if real estate is involved.  Contact Your AttorneyYour attorney will ask you pertinent questions and give you advice about what records to keep.  You should also review your own estate plan documents to make sure they are up to date and reflect your current wishes.  This article was written by Donna A. Schuyler, Attorney, who practices in the areas of estate planning, elder law, guardianship, and probate. Donna Schuyler Law, PLLC; elderlawboise.com. Phone 208-344-1947