Whether you have young children you want to protect, or have adult beneficiaries who are receiving an inheritance from you, having an estate plan in place helps prevent havoc when the inevitable happens. Yet you may not realize that you need an estate planning attorney to help you create one. As you look ahead to your and your family’s future and consider your estate planning needs, also consider these five reasons why working with an estate planning attorney is the best choice.
1. Federal and State Laws Are Complex
When you are planning your estate documents, you need to understand federal and state laws. Many of the forms and programs you find online may be compliant on the federal level, but the laws may be different depending on your state.. Working with an attorney provides vital protection that ensures your estate plan is legally valid.
2. You Need Help with Complex Estates
Many factors can make an estate more complex. Some are simple things, while others are unusual factors, but an attorney will help you navigate each of them. Examples include:
- Large or blended families
- Need for a trust
- Large or high-value assets
- Business ownership
- Investment properties
Situations like these make the estate planning process more complex. And having an attorney help you prepare your documents will ensure nothing is overlooked.
3. You Want to Protect Your Assets from Taxes
You work hard throughout life to create a nest egg (which refers to money saved for the future) for yourself and your beneficiaries. Depending on how large that nest egg is, you may risk losing much of it to taxes. If you work with an attorney, you can protect your assets from taxes with the right structures to reduce the amount of estate tax you owe. Estate planning attorneys know the right techniques to use to move assets legally and safely into trusts and other vehicles to reduce the tax burden on your beneficiaries.
4. You Want to Keep Your Estate out of Court
In addition, using the right estate planning tools can eliminate the need for your estate to go to probate court. Probate court is part of the public record, so your assets and your family’s information are no longer private and protected. Sending an estate through probate court is a costly and time-consuming process for many beneficiaries, but it is not a necessary one. Using trusts effectively with the help of an attorney eliminates the risk of your family spending years in the probate process.
5. You Want to Avoid Family Conflict
High emotions often come into play when someone has died and left behind a large inheritance. Having an estate plan in place can help reduce that risk, and creating an estate plan with the help of a third party, such as an estate planning attorney, adds another layer of protection. With the right plan created by a professional, your family can focus on their grief and healing, rather than arguing about who gets what from the estate.
You have assets and loved ones that matter to you. Make sure they are protected with an estate plan and make sure that plan is in line with all current laws by working with an estate planning attorney.