Virginia residents and others may put off creating an estate plan for various reasons. However, it is generally a good idea to put one into place before getting sick of experiencing other significant life events. Significant life events include the birth of a child or grandchild or getting a divorce. In some cases, a child or grandchild will get divorced, which can result in a blended family.
Things may get even more complicated if a son or daughter gets remarried and has a child from two or more different marriages. To protect a child’s inheritance, It may be a good idea to create a trust to hold assets in. That trust can either be revocable or irrevocable, and it should be updated as necessary to ensure that assets are properly titled. An estate planning professional or attorney may be able to help create a trust or other plan documents.
It is critical that a person accounts for family dynamics when creating an estate plan. For instance, it is possible that siblings don’t get along with each other or that children don’t get along with their parents. It is also possible that children or other beneficiaries have different opinions as to whether an asset should be sold. Creating a clear estate plan as early as possible may help to quell disputes or provide a path to resolving them.
Ideally, individuals will begin the estate planning process as soon as they become legal adults. This is because a will, trust or other planning tools may help protect their interests regardless of how much money they have. An estate plan might help a person define the type of medical treatment that he or she receives or dictate who cares for a minor son or daughter after passing on.
