Estate Planning Mistakes Your Monmouth County Lawyer Can Help You Avoid
Estate planning is a great way to get peace of mind that your assets, interests, and loved ones will be secure when you are gone. Everyone should have an estate plan in place, regardless of their situation. Still, many folks do not have an estate plan in place. Even individuals with an estate plan make the big mistake of not working with an attorney throughout the process. Creating an estate plan without the advice of an attorney can lead to oversights, poor planning, and costly mistakes. Here are three ways an estate planning attorney can help you avoid some of the most common mistakes.
1. Outdated Documents
Outdated documents can lead to significant issues after your death. The will you create when you are 35 will likely not cover all of the relevant aspects of your life when you are 75. Your will needs to change every time there is a major change in your financial or personal circumstances. Buying or selling a business, a change in family status, birth, marriage, divorce, death, relocation—all of these life changes can impact your estate planning needs. The best practice is to update your will every five to seven years and update your healthcare and financial power of attorney every three years. An attorney can help you stay on top of adjusting your estate plan to life changes and remind you when it is time to revisit your plan.
2. Uncoordinated Beneficiaries
Many folks will make the mistake of adjusting their will when life changes occur but leave beneficiary forms unchanged. This can lead to expensive legal issues for your loved ones. Beneficiary forms are legally binding documents. Regardless of what is stated in your will, the beneficiary listed on that form will take priority. So, if you listed your first spouse as the beneficiary on your retirement account, even if you get a divorce and remarry unless you change the beneficiary form, your first spouse will still get the payout from that account. An attorney can help you coordinate your beneficiary information across all assets.
3. Forgetting About Taxes
An estate planning attorney is specifically knowledgeable of inheritance tax laws. You need to think about how your estate will pay taxes owed as well as minimize the impact of inheritance tax on individual heirs. While any attorney can draw up a will, only a skilled estate planning attorney can help you navigate the sometimes confusing tax laws surrounding probate and inheritance. Determining the best way to utilize all your estate planning options to secure your assets and limit tax impacts can save your loved ones money and ensure that more of your assets go to those you care about.
These are only some of the many mistakes individuals can make with an estate plan. Veitengruber Law is an experienced New Jersey estate planning attorney. We can help you determine the best way to protect your assets and establish a legacy that will live on after you are gone.