It's no secret that kids ask and say some of the craziest things. Sometimes the things they say have no meaning what-so-ever, sometimes they are totally unexpected and sometimes they are honest statements that make us parents see things with a renewed perspective. I will give you an example.
A week ago it was the last day on the job for my husband. That evening, he came back home and took something out of a bag: a LEGO mug - a present from our daughter to him, which he had kept on his desk at work. “I won’t be able to keep this with me at my new job, I will keep it at home instead,” he said to our child. “Ok! You can use it at home…and when you die I will give it to my kids” she said 😮 “Oh, that’s very sweet of you…In my will, I’ll specify that I want to leave this mug to you”.
Here comes the moment of revelation ... he can't leave this mug to her ... we don’t have an estate plan in place! Like many married couples, estate planning is something that we know we should do, but we have been postponing. In fact, according to a Caring.com survey, just 4 in 10 U.S. adults currently have estate planning documents such as a will or living trust. For those with children under the age of 18, the figure is even lower, with just 3.6 having an end-of-life plan in place.
Many of us assume that estate plans are for the golden years, or that we don’t have enough assets for it to be worth the expense. Both of these assumptions are incorrect. Anyone who owns assets (personal property and belongings, investments made, including retirement plans, bank accounts, business interests, any life insurance proceeds paid out, and more), is married, has children or pets should seriously consider creating a will or a trust.
What happens to our assets if we become mentally disabled and we can no longer make decisions for ourselves? How will our assets be distributed in case we die? Who will protect and take care of the kids after we’re gone? The truth is, if anything unfortunate happens and we don’t have an estate plan in place, the state in which we live and the Federal government will have one for us. Things could get messy and cause hurt feelings. Our loved ones depend on us to make a will, even if we don’t own multiple mansions, a garage full of cars and a bottomless pit of money.
The smart move? Start our estate plan today. Fortunately, making a will or a living trust doesn’t have to be complicated and we don’t necessarily need to hire an attorney. There are a few online estate planning services to help us create one. For our estate planning needs we used Trust & Will, an easy, fast, and secure online service that provides legal forms and information to help people like us create customized and state-specific legal estate planning documents, at a fraction of the cost. They are not a law firm and are not a substitute for a lawyer’s advice about complex estate planning. However the whole site/company was built and approved by attorneys.
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Starting at just $39, Trust & Will provides three major services: trusts, wills and nomination of guardians. They give customers the options to create a shared account with their spouse and even create a will for a spouse or parents. Thanks to an amazing customer support - Meg - who chatted with and guided us along the way, in about 10 minutes, we completed our estate plan, and created these legal documents, which can be updated at any time for no extra cost*:
- Revocable Living Trust;
- Schedule of Assets;
- Pour Over Will;
- HIPAA Authorization;
- Advance Health Car Directive/Living Will.
But in reality we did way more than that. We made a real gift for our kids. We ensured that we have done everything possible to take care of our personal affairs so that if and when something happens to us, things will be as simple as possible for them, the people we love and who depend on us. After putting this off for so long, we feel so relieved knowing it's done!
While thinking about our mortality may not enjoyable, making an estate plan now is a priority which can save money, time and headaches later, no matter the value of our assets.
What other customers think about Trust & Will:
“This company helps you create a trust and/or will online in a matter of minutes. It is SUPER user friendly and they have people available to chat with if you have any questions, which naturally I did. It's very expensive to create one typically and this price couldn't be beat... especially for the lack of prep I had done on the topic. It's as easy as taking a quiz to find out what Friends character you would be... okay maybe just a tad more, but seriously super simple” (Lindsey Mitling)
“Easy! Quick! And perfect way for me to get a Will set up for my family” (Beverly S)
*Documents are not valid or legally binding until printed, signed and notarized.
Disclaimer: The author of this article is not a certified financial planner or advisor. This article is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal, financial, or investment advice. The author was compensated for the purpose of this article but all opinions are her own.
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