It’s that time of year again! Time to make New Year’s resolutions! This year, instead of vowing to shed a few pounds, which you know is a promise that will fall by the wayside within a couple weeks, why not resolve to put an estate plan in place?
It’s the perfect resolution because your attorney actually does a lot of the work for you, and you will feel really relieved to have it done and over with. And as an added bonus, it’s calorie free in case you also make the same old “get in shape” resolution everyone else makes too!
Why It’s Important Not To Wait To Make An Estate Plan
A lot of people think that estate planning is something that can be put off until old age. That’s simply not true. If you are married, and especially if you have children, you should have an estate plan because today’s estate plans include more than just a will. They also include healthcare directives and information about who you want to take care of your children if anything should ever happen to you.
Decisions About Healthcare
If you were ever too ill to make medical decisions for yourself, would your spouse know what to do? Do you think your extended family would agree with your spouse’s decisions? What if the situation were reversed and you were tasked with making decisions about your spouse’s care? Would your spouse’s family agree with your decisions? The easiest way to prevent your spouse from making decisions you disagree with, or your other family members will resent, is to put your wishes in writing.
And if you don’t want your spouse making decisions on your behalf, you can put that in writing too. For example, if you have a sibling who is a doctor, and you would want them to make decisions for you, you can put that in your medical directive.
Appointing A Guardian
If you have young children, you absolutely need an estate plan. You probably have an idea of who you would want to step in and raise your children if the worst came to pass, and you may have even talked with them about it, but that does not guarantee that a Carolina judge will appoint that person guardian.
The only way you can control who your children’s guardian will be is making an estate plan. You can pick who will have custody of them. You can designate a different person to make financial decisions on their behalf. And you can make clear that you want your children to grow up knowing both you and your spouse’s family, not just the family that has custody.
Get A Head Start On Planning Over The Holidays
They say one of the best ways to keep your resolutions is to have someone hold you accountable for them. The holidays are the perfect time to tell your family members you are going to be doing an estate plan in the New Year. You can ask a couple people to hold you to your vow, and while you are seeing all the people that are close to you, you can confirm that the people you intend to make healthcare decision makers, guardians, and general estate administrators are up to the task.