Auto Accident Law 101
How To Rectify 3 Of The Most Common Estate Planning Mistakes
Everett Cook
You have worked hard for your money and assets. You do not want to make some of the most common and expensive estate planning mistakes. Numerous omissions will leave you susceptible in case you are found incapacitated. Other mistakes can severely impact the inheritance of your heirs. Read on and make sure that you will not make the following three estate planning mistakes.
Do Not Make Bad Decisions
Estate planning occurs in two stages. The first half consists of the records that will assist with divvying up your estate after you die. The other half outlines directives for your power of attorney. Your life is essentially in their hands. Among the greatest errors that you could make is deciding on an unqualified person to carry out your wishes. You could set the most effective estate strategy but it does not matter if you choose the incorrect person to help carry it out.
Do Not Leave Your IRA to Your Estate
Do not designate your estate as your IRA beneficiary. If you do this, it will be subject to claims and creditors during probate. Then, if any money is left over after this process, your heirs will get it … eventually. Probate will take years to finish and is expensive. However, if you were to designate your heir as the IRA beneficiaries, it enables those assets to pass beyond probate clear and free, away from lenders.
Do Not Forget to Sign a Health-Care Directive
Another common estate planning mistake is neglecting to make an advance health care directive, also called a living will. This file details your end-of-life wishes for doctors, your family, and your friends. It covers processes such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation, organ donation, and surgery. The guidance that a health care directive provides will save your family the psychological angst of needing to decipher your wishes when they're already under pressure. Without these records, it is considerably more complex for your family to figure out what your wishes are and who should be in charge. Keep a duplicate of your signed health care directive in an accessible and safe place.
These common estate planning errors are easily prevented through concentrated planning of issues that will be important to your loved ones. You want to avoid them because they could be costly and cause your loved ones to suffer. A family law attorney like Haslam & Perri LLP will help guide you in the process.
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After being involved in a serious auto accident with a drunk driver, I struggled heavily with getting the driver's insurance company to open a claim. When the insurance company started pushing back, I knew I needed to do something. I spent a lot of time digging through the laws surrounding auto accident claims so that I knew what my legal rights were. I even talked with an auto accident attorney. I created this site to teach others about what I learned, including my court experience. I hope it helps you to determine how you should proceed with your auto accident case.