Estate Planning

A widower came into my office to create his estate plan. We had a great meeting, and eventually we got to the part where we talked about who would receive his assets after he was gone.

He said something I hear all the time: “After I’m gone, my kids can just split what’s left.”

“That’s certainly one option,” I told him. “Before you decide, though, let me show you another one.”

[Read more…] about The Estate Planning Choice You Probably Don’t Know You Have

“I’ve already taken care of that.”

I hear some version of that all the time. Sometimes it’s after one of our classes. Sometimes it’s at a community event. A person will tell me they don’t think they need an estate plan because they’ve already added one of their children to the deed of their home.

The goal is almost always the same: “I just wanted to avoid probate.”

I understand the thinking. In fact, most of the DIY estate planning decisions I see come from people who are trying to make things easier for their families.

The problem is that estate planning is a system. Changing one piece without understanding how it affects everything else can create problems you never intended.

[Read more…] about The “I Added My Kid to My Deed” Mistake (and Other Common Estate Planning Pitfalls)