Studies show that 75% of Americans do not have a current Will, let alone a current Living Trust, Health Care Power of Attorney, or Financial Power of Attorney.
In the April 25th edition of Forbes Magazine, they listed the seven most common mistakes made in Estate Planning. Number one was not having a current Estate Plan. If you don’t have a current Will or Estate Plan, you’re not going to have the right people in the right places at the right time to carry out your wishes. Further, you’re not going to have your assets, or your “Life’s Work”, go to the people or charities you want, in the way that you want, or at the time you want.
Most people seem to do Estate Planning when they get married and first have children, and then maybe one more time when they retire. The problem with this is that life pushes forward. There are three (3) things in Estate Planning that are always changing: (1) your relationships—those who should help take care of you and your Estate Plan at the right time and in the right roles; (2) what you own—your property is often changing as you’ll have different homes, different cars, different banks, different investment accounts; and (3) the law. The law is changing in ways that effect your Estate Plan. That can be in both State and Federal Taxes and in the ways in which you can protect and control assets. These are some of the reasons that your Estate Plan should be constantly updated.
At the Law Firm of Steven Andrew Jackson, Attorney and Counsellor at Law, we have helped hundreds of families protect themselves and their loved ones, avoid Estate Taxes and Probate Costs, and keep their Estate Plans current with the law through The Customized Protective Estate Planning Solution™.