In the course of my estate planning practice I have found that parents often have questions about how to leave property for their children. There are as many types of options available to a person in crafting their estate planning as there are people. however, I do find that for specific questions seem to arise regularly with my estate planning clients. The purpose of this blog is to list these four questions and provide a simple response to them.
- DO I HAVE TO DISTRIBUTE ASSETS EQUALLY TO MY CHILDREN?
The direct answer to this question is no. Your assets belong to you. You have the ability to handle them and do whatever you want with them during your lifetime. The same is true at your death. So long as you have your estate planning completed, you can designate the distribution of your assets in any percentages you want to your surviving children. There is no requirement that distributions have to be equal among children, unless you have not completed your estate planning. In this instance Idaho intestacy statutes will control and the distributions that are made will be equal.
- SHOULD I LEAVE PROPERTY TO MY CHILDREN OUTRIGHTLY?
This is a more difficult question. Whether you leave assets directly to your children upon your death will depend on a number of things about your children. First, are they of an age where they can handle taking care of the property. In Idaho a person is considered to be a legal adult at the age of 18. However, most 18 year olds are not mature enough to handle receiving a distribution of a large amount of assets or cash.
You may also consider the circumstances of each of your children. Do you have any children with special needs? Do you have any children who may have addictions? Do you have any children who may be married to an individual who is not good or careful with assets or money? Do you have any children who are not careful with money. Once you have determine the specific circumstances of each of your children, then you can make some decisions through your estate planning on how to distribute your assets to each of your children.
- WHAT ARE THE OPTIONS FOR DISTRIBUTION?
The options for distribution are really quite simple. Distributions can be made outrightly up on your death, or distributions can be held in trust for a period of time and then made either on behalf of your children, or directly to your children. Again Estate Planning contains a myriad of options from which you can choose to customize and craft your estate planning to meet your specific needs.
- CAN I DISINHERIT A CHILD?
Well this question is not as common, it does come up from time to time. The short answer to this question is yes, you have the ability to disinherit a child through your estate planning. If this is your goal, there are specific statements that should be made in your estate planning to show that you are in fact disinheriting your child. If all you do is simply leave your child’s name out of your estate planning, the law in Idaho will determine that you simply forgot your child, and that they are entitled to still receive a portion of your estate.
If you have questions about how you can leave assets to your children upon your death through your estate planning, 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 Idaho Estate Planning questions and will help you solve your Idaho Estate Planning problems.
This website includes general information about legal issues and developments in the law. Such materials are for informational purposes only and may not reflect the most current legal developments. These informational materials are not intended, and must not be taken, as legal advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances. You need to contact a lawyer for advice on specific legal issues.