The general advice is that everyone should get an estate plan in place as soon as they can – namely, once they reach the age of majority. While it is understandable that many people this age feel they have far more important things to be doing with their lives rather than planning for the end of them, it is harder to fathom why so many much older people still do not have an estate plan made.
It is easy to put off estate planning, yet the following are signs that you should definitely get one made as soon as you can.
1. You have a child
If you have a child, they need you to have an estate plan. Think what would happen to your child if you and their other parent were both to die. Do you want someone else making decisions about what happens to them? Or would you prefer to decide who should take on the child-raising responsibilities? If you prefer to choose, then name a guardian and consider putting some funds aside to help the children go on without you, as well as arranging for them to inherit whatever you have to leave. Minors can’t actually inherit, so you may need to set up a trust to take care of the assets for them until they can.
2. You marry or divorce
Marrying joins many of your belongings with those of your spouse. Divorcing separates them. Spouses have certain automatic rights to inherit, even if you have no estate plan, but it is better to set out how you want things to work, especially if their inheriting might leave someone else, such as a child from a previous relationship, with less. Divorcing also means you need to reallocate roles you may have given your spouse, such as being a named beneficiary on a life insurance policy or a power of attorney for you.
3. You contract a serious illness or injury
Maybe your mother died of cancer, and when you go for a checkup, the doctor finds worrying signs that you may be in for the same fate. Get the estate plan made now, before your health potentially deteriorates further and it becomes more difficult or forgotten about.
Legal guidance can help you get started on your plan today.