Meeting With An Estates And Trusts Attorney? Find Out What You Can Do While In The Office
No matter how old you are, it is not too soon to schedule a meeting with an estates and trusts attorney so you can go over some important aspects of your estate and have a will created. You want to have the peace of mind knowing that your assets are evenly distributed and taken care of in the right way after your death. Because death is unpredictable, it is better to have things in order just in case something does happen.
Give Another Person Power of Attorney to Handle Things for You in the Future
When meeting with the attorney, you can choose a designated person to take on power of attorney for you if you are ever unable to make important decisions for yourself. The person who has power of attorney should be someone you can trust, such as a child, sibling, or spouse, because this is a big responsibility and this person will have access to your finances. When you cannot make decisions on legal situations and financial situations due to your declining health, it is the person with this authority who will do it all for you while making sure your finances are in order.
Create a Will and Decide Who Will Get Your Assets
While visiting with the attorney, you may want to have a will created. There are plenty of important things that you can cover in your will. Before creating the will for you, the attorney may need to ask some important questions, such as the following:
- Who would you like to list as your beneficiaries?
- How do you want your assets distributed to the beneficiaries?
- Would you like the beneficiaries to receive specific assets?
- Who would you like to have as executor of your will?
- Do you have any debts?
These are only some of the questions you will need to answer when having a will created. You need to provide the attorney with as much information about your financial situation and assets as possible. You must also have a plan for distributing those assets. Remember that you can always visit the attorney to make changes if need be. If you continue to live a long and healthy life, there may come a time where you would like to add a few extra people to your will, including grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Make Important Estate Plans
While the estates and trusts attorney helps you decide who to give power of attorney and write out a living will, the attorney may also help you make many other estate plans. These plans would include making important healthcare decisions, deciding if you would like to be resuscitated or not, making important financial decisions, and making sure the right person takes ownership of your estate if you pass away. When you make these plans while you are still living, you can prevent your loved ones from struggling, fighting, and going through a lengthy probate process when you die. You can even work on creating a letter of intent that covers all the details of what you want to happen after your death.
Regardless of how young you are, you can still benefit from meeting with an estates and trusts attorney now to go over many things, including your living will and estate plans that you would like to make. You cannot predict when it is your time to go, but you can make sure your loved ones receive your assets when you are gone by having things in order ahead of time. If you are prepared to make your living will and you know who you would like to give power of attorney to, make an appointment to see an estates and trusts attorney.