Overcomplicating your estate planning or not doing any estate planning at all are both bad ideas. All too often in our law practice we encounter the situation where a loved one has passed away and the children or other heirs discover that the individual had no Will, Trust or estate plan of any kind in place. The number one cause of this is, pure and simple, procrastination.
While it's understandable that none of us want to deal with our own mortality, not preparing for same can result in some very unpleasant consequences for our surviving family members. Estate planning doesn't have to be scary and, often, can be as simple as a Will, Durable Power of Attorney and Living Will prepared. Many times, our clients can leave our office with those precise documents in hand on the very same day that they first meet with us. That's not to say that everyone's needs are that simple or straightforward. If a client has a particularly large estate or they have children with special needs, their estate planning needs might become a bit more sophisticated. Still, even that kind of planning can be accomplished without too much difficulty.
Here's a great article that I came across that talks about the dangers of procrastinating or overcomplicating your particular estate planning needs. http://www.cnbc.com/2016/11/21/overcomplicating-an-estate-plan-can-really-hurt.html Take a look. I think you'll find it helpful and, hopefully, it will help get you back on the right track with respect to getting your own estate planning in place.
At American Wills & Estates we've been providing trusted and affordable estate planning services to clients throughout Western Pennsylvania for over 25 years. If you have questions or would like to get started with your own estate planning, give us a call today at (412) 381-7370 or visit us online at www.americanwillsandestates.com
posted on April 10, 2017 by:
Lloyd A. Welling, Esq.
Founding Partner of American Wills & Estates