Wills/Trust/Estate/Medical directives

[Haertig]

will accompany them to our secret place at N37°47'29" W111° 29'24"

It's not so secret anymore...

 

[angie_nrs]

Actually, it just says cremation and a beer and pizza party for those that knew me.

This 100%! It's exactly what I have in our notes for that time, except burial instead of cremation. Free food and open bar. Otherwise, nobody would come. LOL!

 

[Neb]

Well we started to nail down our estate planning this evening. Rough topics and it seems our plans are going to be complicate because of our real estate holdings at the least.

So there will be a few trusts that need trustees. Prime candidate is my son but paperwork is not his strength. So we have to find a trustee to make it all work.

Not a comfortable topic but it needs done.

Just thinking out loud I guess.

Ben

 

[Bacpacker]

Ours won't be too complicated. But dread doing it

 

[Haertig]

So we have to find a trustee to make it all work.

You can have trustees (your relatives or other beneficiaries of the trust) and "fund managers" (professionals who administer the trust). The manager controls the disbursements of funds - so an irresponsible child trustee can't go off and buy a Ferrari - but the manager is not the recipient of funds from the trust (there will be some fee charged to the trust for management from a professional management firm). You can provide directives for the manager on how and when you want things disbursed, or leave it all up to their judgement. You can also "sunset" the manager with a clause that says the trustee (beneficiary) will gain full control of the trust after XYZ years, or whatever you want. We had a professional manager assigned when our kids were younger, but I believe that has expired already as our kids are no longer "kids" (I need to go back and check the date and remove the manager if they have not already sunsetted - our kids are responsible now). We also had a clause that the kids could have the manager replaced, but only with another professional manager not of their choice. And only every so often (I think we put once every two years, maximum of twice - but I can't remember). you can make it as fancy as you want or need. The lawyer setting up your trust will charge more for the more complicated things that you add. But that is worth it IMHO - I don't think giving an 18 year old complete control of a multi-million dollar trust is necessarily a wise thing to do.

 

[Weedygarden]

A friend posted this today and I thought it was worth sharing and bringing this thread back up.​

​

Drozdal Funeral Home​

IF YOU DO NOTHING ELSE, put a beneficiary on all of your financial accounts like checking savings CDs, Life Insurance, investments etc. You don't need a will for them to get to your money, just a death certificate.
And make a list, preferably by hand instead of your computer, either give it to your trusted person, spouse or put it in your security box at the bank. If the person doesn't know you have a savings account or a CD at XYZ Bank, they can never go get the money. Make sure you have a trusted person that is a signer on the security box at the bank.

IMPORTANT information to get your affairs in order

Make sure all bank accounts have direct beneficiaries. The beneficiary need only go to the bank with your death certificate and an ID of their own.

TOD = Transfer On Death deed if you own a home. Completing this document and filing it with your county saves your heirs THOUSANDS. This document allows you to transfer ownership of your home to your designee. All they need to do is take their ID and your death certificate to the county building and the deed is signed over. Doing this will avoid the home having to go through probate.

Living Will: Allows one to put in writing exactly what you want done in the event you cannot speak for yourself when it comes to healthcare decisions as well as other final decisions.

Durable Power of Attorney: Allows one to designate a person to make legal decisions if you are no longer competent to do so.

Power of Attorney for Healthcare: This document allows one to designate someone to make healthcare decisions for them.

Last Will and Testament: Designates to whom personal belongings will go to, who the Administrator will be. But if you have a beneficiary on any of your financial accounts, that will override a will. For instance if you say I leave all of my possessions to my daughter Susie, but on your savings account the beneficiary is your best friend, then the money goes to your best friend

Funeral Planning Declaration: Allows one to say exactly one’s wishes as far as disposition of the body and the services.
If the above documents are done, you can AVOID probate.
If all the above is not done, you have to open an estate account at the bank. All money that doesn’t have direct beneficiaries goes into this account. You have to have an attorney to open the estate account. The attorney also has to publicize your passing in the newspaper or post publication at the county courthouse, to allow anyone to make a claim on your property. - It’s a complete PAIN.
Make a list of all banks and account numbers, all investment institutions with account numbers, lists of credit cards, utility accounts, etc. Leave clear instructions as to how and when these things are paid.
Make sure heirs know where life insurance policies are located.
Make 100% sure SOMEONE knows your Apple ID, bank ID account logins and passwords!
Make sure you have titles for all vehicles, campers, etc!
Set up a TRUST for intended beneficiaries, especially those that are too young, and appoint a trustee of said trust.
MOST IMPORTANTLY!!!! - Talk with those closest to you and make all your wishes KNOWN. Talk to those whom you’ve designated, as well as those close to you whom you did not designate. - Do this to explain why your decisions were made and to avoid any lingering questions or hurt feelings.
Hope this helps! Hope this lights a spark to encourage all your friends and family to take care of these things to make it easier for those we all leave behind!
My hope is that the above list at least helps you start an important conversation with your loved ones...

 

[backlash]

Our wills list our daughter and any future children.
Our son is 44 years old. We might need to update our wills.