Retirement Planning Store, Inc.
  • Home
  • LTC
  • Insurance Review Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Blog CMS
  • Annuity
Like us here

What to Avoid When Putting Together Your Estate Plan

11/15/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture

When you think of your passing you want to imagine a loving family benefiting from your legacy of hard work and careful saving. The last thing you want is for there to be a big hassle that causes family feuds and hard feelings. You can prevent this with careful estate planning. Here are three things you definitely want to avoid:

Estate Taxes

You want to keep your money in the family as much as possible, but you have probably heard about the heavy estate taxes your beneficiaries can be up for when you pass. This is especially true for the very wealthy. Thankfully, estate planning laws have been passed that remove these taxes, but only up to a certain amount. 

Of course, these laws are always subject to change, so you should still plan to minimize or eliminate estate taxes for your heirs. There are several ways to do this, including gifting your money while you are alive, setting up an irrevocable life insurance trust, and even establishing residence in one of the 17 states that don’t have estate taxes. 

Family Fights

As any estate lawyer can tell you, even the closest of families can be destroyed by family fights over an estate. You can minimize this risk by being even more thorough in your estate planning than you think you have to be. An estate lawyer can help you with this. 

The biggest troubles occur when you are ambiguous in communicating your wishes. Not being clear in your will or neglecting to place assets in a trust could set up a fight in court. Plus, putting your assets in a trust will offer you more control over where they go. 

Probate

Probate is the process whereby a will is reviewed by the court, debts are paid, and assets are legally distributed. It can be a lengthy process, sometimes lasting over a year. In addition to the frustration and confusion that probate can cause, it also comes with significant fees. To avoid this,put your assets in a trust. This will keep your estate out of probate, move things along more quickly, and save your beneficiaries money. 

Above all else, putting together an estate plan requires organization and effort. It may take multiple trips to your lawyer to ensure that everything is clear and that there are no gaps or holes in your plan. Remember, the last great gift you can give your family is an easy transition of your assets. 

Check out this article on how to protect your assets in the event of your death!

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    My name is Dan Hopwood and I first started my career in the insurance business back in 1988.  2023 will be the start of my 35th year in the business. 

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    November 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    July 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.