Idaho Law Blog
By Lane V. Erickson, Idaho Estate Planning Attorney
So you’ve worked hard your entire life and have put together a pretty good retirement plan for yourself. Your house is paid off, your cars are free and clear of any debts, and your investment and bank accounts are bulging. In your last will and testament you leave your vacation property to your children and a gun that has been in your family for a hundred years to your oldest grandson. You also leave all of your accounts to your children. You told your family all about your last will and testament and everyone knows what you are leaving them.
Originally you simply wanted your last years to be quiet and low key. But let’s say that you talked to some of your friends who are seeing the world. They tell you all about their latest adventures and eventually you change your mind and decide that you want to start traveling. You looked over the cruise ship brochures and you have several exotic destination cruises that you would like to do before you die. The only question is, how do you pay for it.
Even if you don’t want to travel the world or go on exotic cruise destinations, the example described here is designed to get you thinking about your own estate planning. More particularly we want you to think about whether you can and should spend your kid’s inheritance. When it comes to thinking about whether you can or should spend your kid’s inheritance, here are three specific considerations that you should keep in mind.
The Property Belongs to You and Not to Them
The first and most important thing for you to keep in mind is that your property belongs to you and not to your kids. I don’t mean this to sound snide. Rather, I want you to get into the right mindset of thinking about who actually owns your property.
While you are alive you are the owner of your property. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve listed your property in your last will and testament, or if you have made promises to your family, or if you have even written notes down on the back of furniture and other items that you own, the property belongs to you. Unless you have actually physically given it away to someone else, you have the right to use your property, to sell your property, or even to give your property away to whoever you want while you are alive.
You Can Change Your Estate Plan Any Time You Want
The second thing that you should understand is that you have the ability to change your estate plan, including your last will and testament, anytime you want. In fact, we encourage our clients to look over their estate plan regularly and to make any changes that they feel are necessary.
Specifically, every time we meet with clients we discuss their estate plan and ask whether it still accomplishes what our clients want. We encourage our clients to look their estate plan over anytime they or their family go through a major life change, such as a marriage, a divorce, a birth, a death, if someone moves away, or even just the passage of a long period of time. Your estate plan, including your last will and testament doesn’t do you any good if it doesn’t accomplish what you want. Most importantly what you want may change over time if circumstances in your life or in the lives of your family change.
Your Last Will and Testament Only Becomes Effective When You Die
The final thing that you should understand is that your last will and testament only becomes legally effective or enforceable after you die. While you are alive your last will and testament has absolutely no power or control over any of your property. It is simply lying dormant waiting for your death. You can change your estate planning anytime you want, and as often as you want, and in any way that you want, so that you can make sure it meets and satisfies your particular circumstances.
Even if you have listed property specifically in your last will and testament, if you chose to you could sell all of your property, take all the money that you get and go down to Las Vegas to live it up at the Casinos. Or you could take that destination cruise that you’ve always wanted to go on. The point is everything you own belongs to you. Your last will and testament means nothing until you die. Until then, you are free to spend your kids inheritance at anytime and in any way you want. So enjoy your life and take that destination cruise.
ENLIST AN IDAHO ESTATE PLANNING ATTORNEY TO HELP YOU
When it comes to estate planning or probate you should never try to do it alone. If you have questions for yourself or for your family and loved ones, we can help. Call us toll free at 877-232-6101 or 208-232-6101 for a consultation with Lane Erickson and the Racine Olson team of Estate Planning attorneys in Idaho. You can also email Lane Erickson directly at lve@racinelaw.net. We will answer your questions and will help you solve your Idaho Estate Planning problems.