We’re all human beings; and to be human is to error. The problem is that when it comes to making estate planning errors in Atlanta, human error that occurs before our passing can often come back to haunt our loved ones in ways we couldn’t imagine.
While it can be difficult to accept one’s own mortality, the reality is that none of us are going to be on this planet forever. Moving beyond the unavoidable is the benefit of planning in advance, so that your will and estate are executed at your discretion, and also so that your heirs receive the maximum benefit. Use this checklist to make sure you’ve dotted all your I’s and crossed all your T’s.
Atlanta Estate Planning Checklist for
Name your beneficiaries. You’d be surprised at how commonplace this is. The result can tie up your estate in probate court for a lengthy (and costly) period of time. It can also expose your estate to creditors, delays and even avoidable taxes. By naming your beneficiaries well in advance, this calamity can be avoided.
Got divorced? Remove your ex-spouse from your IRA! If you don’t, they could remain on your IRA as a beneficiary. Now let’s say you make this common Atlanta estate planning error and pass away … can you imagine the grief that would it put your children and or current significant other through in the aftermath?
Minors need guardians assigned to them. This means that you need to specifically outline how the guardianship situation will work and who will be assigned the role. Don’t overlook this critical aspect of estate planning.
Review your ownership and correct mistakes. Failure to do so could leave your estate in an imbalanced “state,” which means that your loved ones could overpay taxes, and it also invites other problems that could tie your estate up in court.
Add the residuary clause because you’re going to need it. This covers anything that you have not specifically outlined in your last will and testament or estate. Many times they’re things you don’t even think about, but also are things that loved ones could end up squabbling over.
Plan for the future, especially what you can’t foresee. What if your health suddenly declines? What if your spouse’s health does? What if you have a massive change in assets? All of these issues should be addressed or updated as part of your estate planning method.
Accept that you are not immortal. Don’t delay proper estate planning just because you’re unwilling to accept the inevitable. We’re all going to pass away some day… those of us who plan our estate in advance will leave less of a headache or burden behind for our loved ones, and will pass as much of our wealth onto them in the aftermath. It’s really that cut and dry!
Update your will and trust often. Things change. Love interests change. Your mind may change. Time has a way of changing lots of things… even if we don’t want it to. This means that you should take a look at your will at least once a year or so to make sure it still reflects your wishes and after-life intentions. These are but a few of the most common estate planning errors in Atlanta we see on a weekly basis. The thing is, that many of these are found after the fact… which makes it a lot more expensive, timely and difficult to remedy! Do yourself and your loved ones a favor, use an experienced estate planning law firm in Atlanta like ours and let us handle the fine print while you enjoy life. Give us a call… we can help you right now.
