Granbury Estate Planning Lawyer

Estate Planning Attorney Helping Plan for the Future in Hood County

Most people are surprised by the following facts regarding estate planning and estate plans:

• While about 56 percent of Americans believe estate planning is important, only about a third of all adults across the nation have an estate plan in place.
• Among those with some type of estate plan, wills are the most common document.
• While only about six percent of all those with an estate plan named a guardian for their young children, 77 percent of pet owners designated a guardian for their pet in their estate plan.
• About 18 percent of adults have no idea what an advance health care directive is.

Having an estate plan prepared makes us consider our own mortality, which is something few of us want to do. Although this is understandable, it is important to consider how your loved ones would cope if something unexpectedly happened to you. Once you have an estate plan in place, you will need to revisit it when there is a significant change in your circumstances (marriage, divorce, birth, death, change in assets) or at least every five years. With the help of an estate planning attorney from The Law Offices of Rob Christian, you can make sure your family's needs will be addressed in the future.

Why Is Estate Planning Important?

An estate plan is a set of documents that tell your loved ones how you want your assets to be handled after your death or in the event of an incapacitation. Assets can include your home, your vehicles, the money in your bank account, your investments, and anything else of value you own. Your estate plan also gives direction on important responsibilities, such as choosing a guardian for your children or providing your loved ones with funeral and burial instructions.

Estate planning is something that many of us tend to put off as long as possible. While younger adults may have the luxury of time, life is nothing if not unpredictable. If the unthinkable happens, are you prepared? Just a few of the reasons estate planning is so important include:

• The comprehensive nature of an estate plan ensures that all your wishes and instructions are in one easily accessible place.
• Key players are identified in an estate plan. These include the person or persons you would want to make healthcare and financial decisions on your behalf if you were to suffer an incapacitation. If you have minor children, you may name a guardian, or if you have a grown child with special needs, you could name a trustee for a Special Needs Trust. An executor is named in your will as the person who will manage probate and other tasks. Any trusts you include in your estate plan will have a named successor trustee. There will be beneficiary designations in both wills and trusts that direct who your assets should go to.
• Gift and estate taxes can be minimized through the use of key estate planning tools. While taxes are inevitable, the thoughtful use of trust documents, charitable giving, and gifts to loved ones can help ensure that these taxes will be as low as possible.
• Once your estate plan is in place, there are no unanswered questions, and you are in control. When you have an estate plan, there is no need to default to the state's terms for settling your estate. Worries regarding who the state would choose to raise your children, who would be named as executor of your will, and how your assets would be distributed are non-existent, because you have made those decisions in your estate plan.

You may be surprised at how good it feels to have a comprehensive estate plan prepared that will make your death or incapacitation as simple a process as possible.

What Are the Parts of a Comprehensive Estate Plan?

Your estate plan will be unique to you, your family, the size of your estate, and your goals for the plan. Some of the most common documents that make up an estate plan are:

• A will—Even if you have used a trust or multiple trusts to address the disposition of your assets as well as directions related to an incapacitation, you still need a will if you have minor children who will need a guardian in the event of your death. If your estate is relatively simple, a will may be the preferred document over a trust. Although wills must go through probate, if a person dies without a will, the estate will also go through probate, but it will be up to the state to make decisions regarding the estate.
• Trusts are increasingly being used to address assets and specific situations while avoiding probate court. With a living trust, you may choose to be the trustee until your incapacitation or death, and then your named successor trustee will take over.
• An advance directive or living will can provide instructions for your end-of-life care if you cannot communicate those wishes.
• A healthcare power of attorney can name a person who you have given the authority to make decisions about your medical treatment if you cannot do so yourself.
• A financial power of attorney names another person to make your financial and property decisions if you are unable to do so yourself.

Addressing Concerns Related to Guardianship

There are some situations where it may be necessary to establish guardianship for a loved one. For example, if an elderly family member is no longer fully capable of managing their finances and addressing their personal needs, another family member may become that person's legal guardian. The guardian will be able to make certain decisions on behalf of the ward, and they will also have the obligation to act in the ward's best interests.

While guardianship can be beneficial in certain situations, it can also limit the ward's ability to make their own decisions and have control over their life. At The Law Offices of Rob Christian, we can assist with establishing guardianship, or we can help determine what other alternatives may be available, such as using powers of attorney to ensure that a trusted person can make decisions for someone who can no longer fully meet their own needs.

Contact a Hood County Estate Planning Attorney

Deciding to speak to an attorney about your estate plan is a big step. The array of decisions that must be made can seem overwhelming. The experienced estate planning lawyers from The Law Offices of Rob Christian can guide you through the process and help you make important decisions. We will make the process simple and logical, answering all your questions. Contact The Law Offices of Rob Christian at 682-936-4003 for a free consultation with a skilled, knowledgeable estate planning attorney.