I make my living off of being an effective estate planner with my clients. The reason I do this is because I’m passionate about everyone needing an estate plan and making sure that that estate plan accomplishes would each individual once. And helping my clients achieve their goals and create their own personal customize a state plan I found that there are many estate planning mistakes that are made by my clients. Here are the 5 most common estate planning mistakes to avoid.
1. NOT HAVING AN ESTATE PLAN AT ALL
Whether it’s procrastination or an individual simply wanting to avoid thinking about their own death, the single most common estate planning mistake that I see among my clients is that they do not have an estate plan at all. Intuitively we all know that we are going to die. The only question is when that will happen in our lives. For this reason every single adult individual should be thinking about and completing at least a basic estate plan. Doing this will eliminate problems down the road, can’t help avoid fights between family members, and we’ll give you some assurance that your property is being distributed to those individuals that you choose.
2. NOT PLANNING FOR MINOR CHILDREN
The second most common estate planning mistake that should be avoided it is a failure to plan for minor children. In your estate planning you have the ability to name Guardians for your children if you and your spouse passed away. However if you fail to do this, you are opening up a potential fight among family members who may all, be seeking with good intentions to care for your children. You have the ability, right now, while you’re alive to make these decisions and to avoid potential family fights.
3. FAILING TO PLAN FOR A DISABILITY
The third most common estate planning the state to avoid is planning for your own disability. I tell my clients that having a last will and testament to make sure your property is distributed is important, but it is not the most important part of your estate planning. Rather correctly setting up Powers of Attorney and a living will give you the ability to choose who will care for you and your property including your finances, if you suddenly become disabled and are unable to take care of those things yourself. Having this part of your estate plan completed could have a drastic impact on you while you’re alive.
4. FAILING TO UPDATE YOUR ESTATE PLAN
Another common mistake that is made when it comes to estate planning is failing to update the estate plan after a major life change. Life is not static. Life is full of changes, challenges, and new experiences. Each of these could have an impact on your estate plan. For example if you are married, and have an estate plan, and then you become divorced your estate plan they no longer accomplish what you want. Similarly if your spouse or another close loved one was to die, this may impact who you want your property to be distributed to upon your death. I always tell my clients that if there is any major life change which includes divorce, death, moving, or just the passage of time, it is a good idea to review your estate plan and make sure that it is current and updated.
5. NOT MEETING WITH A PROFESSIONAL TO COMPLETE YOUR ESTATE PLAN
Finally, many of my clients will come to me after they have created their own estate When online or through a software kit. I often find that these estate plans are not legally enforceable given the laws of the state of Idaho. For this reason I encourage my clients to always seek a professional who can help them complete their estate plan. While this may sound self-serving, it avoids the time and expense of creating an estate plan that will just have to be changed to make it legally binding. It is always better off to pay a little bit of money up front, to avoid more costly mistakes later.
If you have questions about avoiding these common estate planning mistakes, or creating your own customized Idaho estate plan, 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.
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