Estate planning is an essential part of
your personal finances, but even those who understand this, may have done
little or nothing to plan ahead for their death. A surprising number of people
do not even have a will. There are many reasons why an individual will avoid
estate planning, and many of the reasons people have are based upon a
misunderstanding of the process involved. The following are four of the most
common explanations heard from people as to why they avoid estate planning.
They don’t have enough assets to be concerned about it
Many people believe that they simply do not have enough wealth to engage in estate planning. These same people don’t want to be bothered with the thought of drawing up a will or anything else related to estate planning. The truth is that you don’t have to have a lot of wealth to have the need for estate planning, owning something as simple as a house can create problems after your death. Probate can be long and cumbersome, but this can be avoided with estate planning today.
They don’t have the time
This reason borders on an excuse. It is true that you may be a busy person, but the fact is that there are certain things that you must make time for, and estate planning is one of them. You owe it to your family and others to make sure your financial affairs are in order. Not only will your wishes be carried out, but the process will be more orderly with the planning that you do today. What makes estate planning easy and less time consuming is using the services of an estate planner. After a consultation with an estate planner, your wishes will be understood, and all that is needed is for the proper paperwork to be drawn up. This work is all done by an estate planning attorney, so you are not spending a lot of your time.
A family will work everything out
It is amazing how often people think that everything will work out financially if they were to die. Family attorneys tell a different story. Siblings, who get along fine, suddenly are at odds over a family asset or money. Children and surviving parents will fight as well. The family of the surviving spouse may try to prevent children from an inheritance if they were from a previous marriage. There are many circumstances that only manifest themselves after your death. Estate planning prevents this fighting from happening.
They have been putting it off
Procrastination is something everyone has a problem with now and then, but you cannot afford to put off something as important as estate planning. No one can know the future, but there is a certain chance that something could happen to you very soon, and then there is nothing you can do. Keep in mind that you can have medical issues that incapacitate you. You can have an accident or perhaps a sudden stroke. Your mental faculties are such that you can no longer make decisions. Estate planning can help you in advance, even in situations where you have become mentally impaired.
They don’t have enough assets to be concerned about it
Many people believe that they simply do not have enough wealth to engage in estate planning. These same people don’t want to be bothered with the thought of drawing up a will or anything else related to estate planning. The truth is that you don’t have to have a lot of wealth to have the need for estate planning, owning something as simple as a house can create problems after your death. Probate can be long and cumbersome, but this can be avoided with estate planning today.
They don’t have the time
This reason borders on an excuse. It is true that you may be a busy person, but the fact is that there are certain things that you must make time for, and estate planning is one of them. You owe it to your family and others to make sure your financial affairs are in order. Not only will your wishes be carried out, but the process will be more orderly with the planning that you do today. What makes estate planning easy and less time consuming is using the services of an estate planner. After a consultation with an estate planner, your wishes will be understood, and all that is needed is for the proper paperwork to be drawn up. This work is all done by an estate planning attorney, so you are not spending a lot of your time.
A family will work everything out
It is amazing how often people think that everything will work out financially if they were to die. Family attorneys tell a different story. Siblings, who get along fine, suddenly are at odds over a family asset or money. Children and surviving parents will fight as well. The family of the surviving spouse may try to prevent children from an inheritance if they were from a previous marriage. There are many circumstances that only manifest themselves after your death. Estate planning prevents this fighting from happening.
They have been putting it off
Procrastination is something everyone has a problem with now and then, but you cannot afford to put off something as important as estate planning. No one can know the future, but there is a certain chance that something could happen to you very soon, and then there is nothing you can do. Keep in mind that you can have medical issues that incapacitate you. You can have an accident or perhaps a sudden stroke. Your mental faculties are such that you can no longer make decisions. Estate planning can help you in advance, even in situations where you have become mentally impaired.
