Want to make sure your money or your parent’s money and assets go to whomever you or they would choose if something happens? Or, would you rather pay to have random strangers in the courts decide? If something happens and you’re incapacitated, do you want to make sure you choose who is making health care decisions for you until you can again? Or, do you want to let the doctors and the courts decide what is best for you?
While planning and growing Gentreo, we interviewed lots of families about their thoughts on estate planning. Many of the stories involved the horrors of people who had done nothing because they thought estate planning was only something wealthy individuals or families did. Unfortunately, this misconception ended up costing these families thousands. Almost all of these families had to go to court and pay attorneys for services they never even knew they needed, like dispersing assets or assigning someone to make decisions for a sick relative. If their loved ones simply put the right documents in place, thousands of dollars might have been saved, and assets and family treasures would not have been caught up in court decisions for years.
“Estate planning” is a scary term that makes lots think of the rich people living in Beverly Hills or the Upper East Side of Manhattan. And, it makes lots of people think of dying. However, this is wrong on both accounts.
Estate planning is something all of us need to be doing. Any person aged 18 or older needs critical documents, whether they have $500 or $5 million in their bank account. What’s more, we should think of estate planning as a means to protect our assets and our loved ones, not a looming portent of death. Not all documents have to do with distributing your estate after you die, anyway. Some of the most important come into play while you’re still alive, if something happens to you that makes it impossible for you to communicate your wishes, yourself.
Everyone should have a Health Care Proxy so someone you know and trust can make health care decisions for you when you can’t. A Power of Attorney can help you make sure your loved ones, instead of the courts, make financial decisions that support you when and if you are incapacitated.
Next, you need to store all of your information in a safe place so you can find it easily. Do you know your mother’s health care insurance number? Do you even know who her carrier is? If your documents are hidden in the basement somewhere or locked away in a safe deposit box that only one or two people have access to, can you really expect them to be found when needed most?
Join Gentreo today to learn, plan and protect your future and the future for your loved ones, too.
