Estate planning is an important task that many people want to avoid for as long as possible. People generally dislike thinking about what happens after they die or the possibility of an extreme medical emergency.
Quite a few people never get around to establishing an estate plan. Those who do sometimes cut corners in order to keep their costs as low as possible or finish the process as quickly as they can. Small mistakes during the estate planning process can lead to complications after someone dies or more expense in the future when they seek to update their documents. The three tips below can help Texas testators optimize the positive impact of an estate plan.
Think carefully about individual beneficiaries
The best estate plans include thorough details based on an individual’s circumstances. Before they sit down with their estate planning attorney, they need to identify their beneficiaries and determine what they intend to leave for each of those people.
They may also need to consider the challenges their beneficiaries face. Struggling marriages, high levels of debt, addiction issues and medical challenges can all endanger an inheritance or undermine the positive impact it has on a beneficiary. People can discuss their intentions and concerns to draft the most effective documents possible.
Consider the challenges of probate proceedings
Testators often focus so much on what they leave to beneficiaries that they fail to address other important practical issues. For example, they may not take steps to protect their resources from creditors’ claims in probate court. Their beneficiaries might end up receiving far less and they hope to pass on to them due to the lack of prior planning.
Those with larger estates may also need to consider the possibility of federal estate taxes reducing the legacy they leave. Even disputes among beneficiaries that could lead to litigation might diminish what the estate is worse. Some testators add penalty or no-contest clauses to their documents to prevent their loved ones from fighting over estate resources.
Address a risk of emergencies, not just death
Some people are overly simplistic in their approach to estate planning. They focus on what happens when they die but fail to address the possibility of incapacity due to a medical emergency or advanced age. Estate plans can include advance directives discussing medical preferences and powers of attorney that protect people from a loss of control or property in the event of their incapacitation later.
As a final note, downloading fill-in-the-blank documents from the internet can be a major mistake. People may draft documents that don’t actually conform to Texas state law. Their wills and other paperwork may not hold up in court after they die or in the event of an emergency.
Creating custom documents that specifically address personal concerns and legacy wishes is usually the best option for those engaged in estate planning. Texas testators who are pragmatic and systematic in their approach to estate planning can optimize the benefits derived from the process.