If you’re reading this, there is still time to take part in Make a Will Month. Post beach, pre-back-to-school, August or September is a great time to catch up on the project nearly everyone loves to put off till tomorrow: starting, updating, or completing your Will.
Last Will & Testament
• DO leave a list showing where your assets are held. This is a huge gift for your family members to use in the event tragedy strikes. A lot of the time and expense spent administering an estate comes from locating a departed person’s assets. If you do nothing else about your estate planning this month, at least do this. (Stein Sperling has a handy Estate Organizer on its website.)
• DO remember to update your beneficiary designations. A Last Will and Testament does not govern what happens to retirement accounts and life insurance policies if you have beneficiary designations. You need to stay on top of them, know what they say, and keep them current. BTW: It’s smart to have both a primary and a contingent (backup) beneficiary.
• DON’T leave your kids without resources. If you have life insurance and minor children, you really need an estate plan. Minor children who are listed as beneficiaries of your life insurance proceeds won’t receive those funds until they reach the age of majority, at which time they’ll get one lump sum without any restrictions on how the funds can be used. Use an estate plan to specify what funds you want your kids to have access to, when, and for what purposes.
• DON’T get bogged down by one particular decision. (One common speedbump: “We could never decide on a guardian for our kids, so we just decided to wait on doing an estate plan until they’re over 18.”) Your estate plan can (usually) be changed. Just start, already.
Sadly, if something happens to you and you don’t have a Will, your family will not only be grieving your passing — they’ll be left without the documentation and guidance needed to manage without you. Plus the courts will decide for you, so complete or update your Will today!
PRO TIP: Unlike the movies, in real life they don’t have formal Will readings where the family gathers around to find out who’s in and who’s out. It’s all done privately and professionally. Contact an Elder Law attorney in your area for more info on Colorado based Wills and the probate requirements. (Article compliments of AMAC)