Building an Enduring Plan for a Lasting Legacy
One of life’s greatest rewards is sharing your wealth with others. It takes planning to manage assets to take care of one’s own needs and wants. It takes additional planning and knowledgeable guidance to help ensure your financial legacy makes a difference in the lives of your loved ones or a favorite charity.
If you have an estate plan to control the distribution of your assets, it will benefit everyone–you, your family, and the causes you care about. It will also help mitigate potential pitfalls in the future. Our team has the resources to assist your attorney and CPA with a personalized plan that not only protects your assets but also helps you share your wealth with the people and charities you care about most.
Strengthen Your Legacy
One way to think of it is like this: if you don’t plan for your estate, it will inevitably be done for you. Most often the state will intervene, which can take a toll in taxes, time, and additional emotional stress for loved ones. That is why it is important to develop your own estate plan.
We are here to make legacy planning a positive, life-affirming endeavor that leads to the preservation of your family, values, and your assets transferring efficiently based on your wishes.
We have access to experts in trusts, insurance, philanthropy, and family dynamics. Our team is also adept at working with other professionals–such as CPAs and attorneys–to help ensure a well-coordinated approach. We want to make sure that your wishes are communicated to all involved, that your thoughts are thoroughly and accurately documented, and that your plans are amended appropriately as new marriages and births occur in your family.
Protect Your Legacy
There are various instruments that work within your overall estate plan to provide certainty and control over everything you have worked for and accumulated during your lifetime, regardless of the asset level. Some examples include wills, trusts, insurance policies, and carefully considered durable powers of attorney.
Using instruments such as these can give you the confidence of knowing that your estate will be handled as you wish. It also means that you can potentially avoid the lengthy and expensive probate process.
Well-documented estate plans may also help your family avoid the court’s involvement in appointing a guardian or conservator in the event of incapacity. Thorough documentation can provide for long-term care or education for children or grandchildren while other investment vehicles can provide for a favorite charity.
Our team works with you and your other professional advisors to ensure your wishes are communicated in writing and are legally binding. Moving forward, we will revisit your plan regularly to ensure it is up to date.
These legal documents should be considered for every estate plan: a will, a revocable living trust, a durable power of attorney for financial affairs, a durable power of attorney for medical decisions, and a living will.