General estate planning advice

  6 min read

You should always talk to an attorney in your jurisdiction about estate planning, but here are a few considerations and recommendations to get you started.

​​ For everyone

​​ Try to avoid probate

Probate is the process of a court validating a deceased person’s (decedent) will (if they have one), paying off outstanding debts, and either distributing the assets in accordance with the decedent’s wishes or appointing an executor or administrator to distribute the assets in accordance with their wishes and/or in accordance with the law.

As you could maybe tell from that definition alone, probate can be a really tedious and sometimes expensive process – you should do what you can to avoid it (if it makes sense in your situation). You’ll need to consult with a lawyer on the specifics of your situation, but some potential ideas to look into are:

• Naming beneficiaries and alternative beneficiaries for all of your bank accounts, retirement accounts, and life insurance policies.
• Having your attorney prepare a Transfer on Death Deed¹ so that the desired recipient of your home can simply provide a death certificate in order to receive the home, rather than going through probate.
• Filing a Beneficiary Designation for a Motor Vehicle¹ in your state, so that your vehicle can be passed directly to your desired heir.

​​ For specific situations

​​ If you own a home

Often, a married couple will desire to leave their home to their children in equal parts. This can often create new problems for siblings.

Take the following situation, for example:

• Sibling A cannot imagine selling mom and dad’s home and wants to keep the home as a place for family get-togethers.
• Sibling B wants to sell the home, get her share, and be done with it.
• Sibling C wants to keep the house as a real estate investment and rent it out to create passive income.
• Sibling D lives in China and never returns messages, but nothing can be done with the house until he agrees with it.

It will sometimes make more sense for parents to either give the home to a particular child and compensate other children with other assets. Another option could be to instruct that the house be sold and the proceeds divided evenly. For some people, especially if they have other real estate interests, it could make more sense to place the home in a trust.

​​ If you are single

You might think that proper estate planning has no purpose if you have no spouse or children, but who will make sure your affairs are wrapped up after your death.

Who do you want to care for your dog after you die? Do you want to leave a sufficient amount of money to pay for the dog’s food and veterinary costs? If you expect your mom to wrap up your affairs, is she aware of all of your bank accounts and does she know where you keep the title to your car?

There are a variety of details and things to consider, some of which should involve your attorney, and others not. The important thing is to take the time to make appropriate plans for your things upon your death.

​​ If you are married with kids

You want to be sure to plan not just for the possibility of your death, but also the death of you and your spouse. This means having conversations with each other about who you would want to care for the children if you were to both die suddenly². It also means having conversations with the person(s) about their willingness to care and provide for your children.

Also, your situation may call for a Trust, so that you and your spouse’s assets are able to be easily accessed by your children’s guardian, but also protected so that you can ensure that your money will only go to care for your children, and not to help cover your sister’s car payment.

These situations tend to be more complicated, so we recommend that you talk with an attorney.

​​ If you are married without children

While it might be easy to say you want everything to go to your spouse in the event you die, what if both you and your spouse were to die? Have you had a conversation about where you would want your money to go if you both die? Split between your families? To charities you believe in?

Alternatively, imagine if the husband is an only child and has promised to care for his widowed mother in her old age. If he dies without a will, the default in the law (at least in Texas) is that everything goes to his wife.

What if his mother was anticipating something from his estate and receives nothing? He is potentially setting up bad blood between the two people whom he loved the most and would have wanted there to be amicable, if not good, relations between them.

​​ If you have a blended family

It has become more and more common for people to bring children into their marriage. These often create the most potential for bad blood to develop between family members. Perhaps a father raised his step-children as his own, yet because he had no will, they received none of his inheritance. The emotional sting is often more biting than any financial repercussions.

Another instance is people with adult children who get remarried. Now, the new spouse has a claim on the inheritance of children, while at the same time lacking a substantive relationship with them. Put more plainly, Dad dies and half of his wealth goes to his new wife.

This situation is a potential powderkeg. The kids feel like their step-mother has staked a claim in their childhood home and probably married their dad for his money. While they may have tolerated her before, they’re no longer held back by the desire to not upset their father. Meanwhile, the wife is grieving her husband and feels like his children are trying to kick her out of her home. It’s a volatile, painful situation, one in which there are no winners.