Estate Planning During the COVID Pandemic
2020 has been a rough year brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although we all remain hopeful that this too shall pass, returning to how we used to be before the pandemic may not be possible anytime soon. This makes preparing for the worst and securing your and your family’s future a critical action that you should be doing now more than ever.
One of the best ways to ensure you are well prepared for what life may bring in this time of crisis is to start with estate planning. Through an estate plan, you are giving yourself and your family peace of mind that everything will be well taken care of if anything untoward happens to you. Though it’s not something anyone would wish for, preparedness is the best gift your family can have during rough times.
The importance of estate planning.
In most cases, estate planning is all about your family and not yours. We even call it an act of love for your family since you are removing the burden of figuring out what you wanted when you are no longer able to do so for yourself.
It’s important to note that without an estate plan, state law and probate courts will determine who will be responsible for your financial affairs and healthcare decisions, which isn’t just costly but can also cause pain and burden to your family.
To ensure you get the most out of your estate planning, below are some key points that you should review with the help of an expert estate planning attorney.
Estate planning documents.
Estate planning requires at minimum the following documents:
- A will is a document necessary to manage and distribute a deceased individual’s estate and assets. This document will contain the appropriate beneficiaries and the designated executors who will carry out the terms of the will.
- Living Trust or revocable grantor trust protects spouses, children, and individuals with special needs. A properly drafted and funded trust can include agents who will control your assets upon disability or death.
- Power of Attorney appoints an agent who will manage the financial and legal affairs of the incapacitated individual. There are many different types of Durable Power or Attorney documents, and you can learn all about them here.
- Power of Attorney for Healthcare allows you to appoint a healthcare agent capable of making medical decisions on your behalf. Having this document in place allows an agent to make timely actions and decisions on treatment types, medical staff choice, and more.
Failing to secure these documents will require court intervention to make the needed decisions on your behalf.
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Keep your trust funded and up to date.
On top of securing the above documents, they should also be reviewed and updated as necessary every couple of years. Periodically reviewing these documents ensure that the decisions you made previously are still consistent with your current situation and preferences. Moreover, as your assets grow over time, trust funding and estate planning goals need to be revisited.
Funding your living trust is of equal importance as periodically reviewing the above documents. These involve re-titling your assets like home and other financial assets into the name of your living trust. It also includes designating the trust as the beneficiary of specific assets like life insurance and retirement accounts.
If you haven’t started with estate planning yet, the COVID19 pandemic should be a wake-up call. Start securing your family’s future today when you are still more capable of doing so.
Good luck and stay safe!