FAQs
Isn’t estate planning really expensive?
Some people seem to think so, but what you’re paying for is not the document itself – the document is just the vehicle through which your wishes are carried out. The true value is in the outcome and the peace of mind it provides. Knowing your legacy will be protected, preserved, and passed on to the future generations of your family. The hardest pill for most people to swallow is that this process is inevitable for literally every person. What it comes down to is whether you want to invest in creating an estate plan before it’s needed or waiting until it’s too late and struggling through the legal probate process. If cost if the primary concern, it’s also important to note that the legal probate process is nearly always significantly more expensive and time-consuming that estate planning.
I’m relatively young and healthy. Can’t I do this later?
One word: PANDEMIC. The truth is that no matter how young and healthy you are, there will always be things outside our control. This isn’t meant to scare you into catastrophic thinking. This is simply a recognition of reality. It’s always better to have proactive guardrails in place so we can be more prepared for unforeseen events in the future.
Do I even have assets that are valuable enough to justify creating a trust/will?
Absolutely yes. Estate plans are not limited only to “big things” (houses, cars, pets, etc…). Anything from family heirlooms, to digital assets, to a personal business, etc… are accounted for in trusts and wills. Also, the designations you make in a trust take effect immediately – in the event of things like severe injury. Consider questions like “Who will run my business if I suffer an incapacitating long-term injury?”
What happens if I don’t have a trust or will at the time of my passing?
Each state has their own probate laws that will take effect in the event there is no trust/will in place. So basically, the state (not your loved ones) will decide what happens to all of your assets. I don’t think anyone wants their family’s wellbeing to end up in the hands of a court or defaulting to state-level probate laws. Not to mention, the last thing your family will want to think about while dealing with the loss of a loved one is the stressful and expensive legal process of asset dispersion.