Your ‘Last Will and Testament’

[cnelk]

I recently went to my Estate Planning Attorney and updated my Will.

If you haven’t done this I highly recommend you do.

Important things I’ve learned and completed and would encourage everyone to do ASAP (some may depend on your state) to avoid probate.



- Make sure all bank accounts have direct beneficiaries. The beneficiary need only go to the bank with your death certificate and an ID of their own.



- TOD = Transfer On Death deed if you own a home or property (no mortgage) Completing this document and filing it with your county saves your heirs THOUSANDS. This document allows you to transfer ownership of your home to your designee. All they need to do is take their ID and your death certificate to the county building and the deed is signed over. Doing this will avoid the home having to go through probate.


- Living Will: Allows one to put in writing exactly what you want done in the event you cannot speak for yourself when it comes to healthcare decisions


- Durable Power of Attorney: Allows one to designate a person to make legal decisions if one is no longer competent to do so.



- Power of Attorney for Healthcare: This document allows one to designate someone to make healthcare decisions for their person.



- Last Will and Testament: Designates to whom personal belongings will go too.



- Funeral Planning Declaration: allows one to say exactly one’s wishes as far as disposition of the body and the services.



- Make a list of all banks and account numbers, all investment institutions with account numbers, lists of credit cards, utility accounts, etc. Leave clear instructions as to how and when these things are paid. Make sure heirs knows where life insurance policies are located.



- Make 100% sure SOMEONE knows your Apple ID, computer, bank ID account logins and passwords!!!!



- Make sure you have titles for all vehicles, campers, etc. in one place that is easily accessible.



- MOST IMPORTANTLY!!!! - Talk with those closest to you and make all your wishes KNOWN. Talk to those whom you’ve designated, as well as those close to you whom you did not designate. - Do this to explain why your decisions were made and to avoid any lingering questions or hurt feelings.



Hope this helps! Hope this lights a spark to encourage all of you to take care of these things to make it easier for those we’ll leave behind!



*** I am NOT an attorney. The above is all simply lessons that I’ve learned on my own. Of course only you can make decisions for yourself. My hope is that the above list at least helps you start an important conversation with your loved ones and an attorney that can help you complete all the necessary steps. ***

 

[JDPAPA]

Valuable post and very timely for me!
Thank you very much for posting all of the details.

 

[Taudisio]

My dad has been trying to deal with grandfathers estate and he was a beneficiary for my uncle (never married and no kids). Uncle has been gone for over two years and it’s just now getting sorted. Grandfather hid accounts all over the place. Needless to say, he is stressed and pissed off at both of them in their graves because he has been going through probate and attorneys. Dad also said he has his stuff lined out with his attorney for me and my sister. We have learned everything stated above on the fly from various attorneys. Please make sure you have all your paperwork in a spot where someone important knows its location in case of a sudden passing. Getting my grandfather proper “end of life care” was a mother because doctors are terrified to do anything when they don’t know if you have power of attorney for healthcare and we feel he was neglected until the paperwork was found and we were able to get him moved.

 

[cnelk]

My attorney gave me four (4) General Power of Attorney documents. He said in all the years he's done this it seems that 4 is a good number.
When your beneficiaries take the PoA to present it, the place may keep it.
Your representative(s) dont NOT want to run out of PoA documents.

Also, In my case, it was especially helpful to do the TOD with my out of state property [Wyo land/cabin] to avoid probate.

In case anyone is wondering, the cost to do my Will and stuff was less than $200.
Money well spent to save your family lots of headaches.

 

[backyardbandit]

Well said. A little legwork on the front end can save a BOATLOAD of legwork and headaches after you're gone.
Not having it on paper who you want your specific belongings to go to is a great way to rip your family apart after you pass away. It happens ALL THE TIME. Don't assume anything with your siblings(or nieces/nephews) if you have elderly parents. Have them get it on paper now to avoid the fights later.

 

[LostArra]

Money well spent to save your family lots of headaches.

Your points are well taken but it will always be a headache when someone dies unless they spent their last dime the day before and owned nothing. Planning ahead reduces a few headaches for those picking over the remains.

 

[SunnyInCo]

As a financial planner, I consul people on their estate plan with their attorneys. One very important topic that creates issues are Power of Attorney (POA) documents. Yes, you can have a blanket POA, however, many financial institutions require their own paperwork. Also, many of these expire after two or three years. For example JP Morgan requires their own document, as does Chase bank, and Schwab.

The point is make sure you research or speak with your financial institutions and understand their own requirements for when you are still living and after death.

 

[wapitibob]

Get a Will and put everything in a Trust.

 

[cnelk]

There many types of Trusts.

A person just can’t say ‘put it in a Trust’.

Be informed

 

[wapitibob]

There many types of Trusts.

A person just can’t say ‘put it in a Trust’.

Be informed

I can, and I did. Most are smart enough to get some legal advise and choose the right one for their needs.

 

[Hnthrdr]

I recently went to my Estate Planning Attorney and updated my Will.

If you haven’t done this I highly recommend you do.

Important things I’ve learned and completed and would encourage everyone to do ASAP (some may depend on your state) to avoid probate.



- Make sure all bank accounts have direct beneficiaries. The beneficiary need only go to the bank with your death certificate and an ID of their own.



- TOD = Transfer On Death deed if you own a home or property (no mortgage) Completing this document and filing it with your county saves your heirs THOUSANDS. This document allows you to transfer ownership of your home to your designee. All they need to do is take their ID and your death certificate to the county building and the deed is signed over. Doing this will avoid the home having to go through probate.


- Living Will: Allows one to put in writing exactly what you want done in the event you cannot speak for yourself when it comes to healthcare decisions


- Durable Power of Attorney: Allows one to designate a person to make legal decisions if one is no longer competent to do so.



- Power of Attorney for Healthcare: This document allows one to designate someone to make healthcare decisions for their person.



- Last Will and Testament: Designates to whom personal belongings will go too.



- Funeral Planning Declaration: allows one to say exactly one’s wishes as far as disposition of the body and the services.



- Make a list of all banks and account numbers, all investment institutions with account numbers, lists of credit cards, utility accounts, etc. Leave clear instructions as to how and when these things are paid. Make sure heirs knows where life insurance policies are located.



- Make 100% sure SOMEONE knows your Apple ID, computer, bank ID account logins and passwords!!!!



- Make sure you have titles for all vehicles, campers, etc. in one place that is easily accessible.



- MOST IMPORTANTLY!!!! - Talk with those closest to you and make all your wishes KNOWN. Talk to those whom you’ve designated, as well as those close to you whom you did not designate. - Do this to explain why your decisions were made and to avoid any lingering questions or hurt feelings.



Hope this helps! Hope this lights a spark to encourage all of you to take care of these things to make it easier for those we’ll leave behind!



*** I am NOT an attorney. The above is all simply lessons that I’ve learned on my own. Of course only you can make decisions for yourself. My hope is that the above list at least helps you start an important conversation with your loved ones and an attorney that can help you complete all the necessary steps. ***

Sound advice, you left me that little cabin up in Wyoming right? Spelled HNTHRDR from rokslide, the attorney can find me I’m sure

I’m much younger but going through this right now with my family and thankfully my dad did this, and made me an executor so hopefully very little worries when that dark day comes. You have plenty of miles still left on ya I’m sure!

 

[cnelk]

Like I wrote in the first post, visit with an attorney.
I only gave some suggestions.

The attorney will be the one to tell you what’s best for your situation - Not me or anyone else on Rokslide

 

[fwafwow]

Great thread to encourage people to make things easy on their loved ones. My post isn't legal advice and no one can rely on it.

Like I wrote in the first post, visit with an attorney.
I only gave some suggestions.

The attorney will be the one to tell you what’s best for your situation - Not me or anyone else on Rokslide

^^^This is the best advice in this thread IMHO.

I recently went to my Estate Planning Attorney and updated my Will.

If you haven’t done this I highly recommend you do.

Important things I’ve learned and completed and would encourage everyone to do ASAP (some may depend on your state) to avoid probate.

- Make sure all bank accounts have direct beneficiaries. The beneficiary need only go to the bank with your death certificate and an ID of their own.

Note that the bold text is very important. Also, holding transfer on death (TOD) accounts with beneficiaries, an asset owned with a right of survivorship, etc. will avoid probate, but that isn't always a great idea. First, if you do create a Will, the terms of the Will will not control any such TOD or other beneficiary designation assets (including 401(k)s, life insurance, etc.) You may end up avoiding probate but thwarting the greater plan. Note also that financial institutions sometimes inadvertently cause this problem by suggesting account title changes for the reason of avoiding probate. ASK the attorney if avoiding probate makes sense (and more on that below). Second, if you want to avoid probate, there are better ways to do it.

- TOD = Transfer On Death deed if you own a home or property (no mortgage) Completing this document and filing it with your county saves your heirs THOUSANDS. This document allows you to transfer ownership of your home to your designee. All they need to do is take their ID and your death certificate to the county building and the deed is signed over. Doing this will avoid the home having to go through probate.

Again, whether and how much you save depends on the probate process in your state, and will mean the property will not be controlled by your Will (which is OK - as long as that's what you and the attorney want). And you can have a property titled JTWROS even with a mortgage.

- Living Will: Allows one to put in writing exactly what you want done in the event you cannot speak for yourself when it comes to healthcare decisions

Not exactly. The Living Will controls in very narrow circumstances.

- Durable Power of Attorney: Allows one to designate a person to make legal decisions if one is no longer competent to do so.

True. You can also designate more than one person (which adds complexity) and one followed by others.

- Power of Attorney for Healthcare: This document allows one to designate someone to make healthcare decisions for their person.

Great to have, including with a Living Will.

- Last Will and Testament: Designates to whom personal belongings will go too.

Yes, but more. The Will controls everything you own in your individual name that does not pass upon death by contract, account beneficiary designation, etc. (TOD, JTWROS, etc. mentioned above). It is not limited to personal property. You must also designate a person to handle the estate (executor/personal representative), you can name guardians for minor kids, and have trusts created under your Will (such as if you don't want kids to get $ until certain ages).

- Make a list of all banks and account numbers, all investment institutions with account numbers, lists of credit cards, utility accounts, etc. Leave clear instructions as to how and when these things are paid. Make sure heirs knows where life insurance policies are located.

Good recommendation to keep the info, but any instructions you leave are mere requests. The assets are either going to pass to a designated beneficiary (like of a TOD account), or pursuant to the terms of the Will. Debts will be paid by the executor before anyone gets assets passing under the Will.

- Make 100% sure SOMEONE knows your Apple ID, computer, bank ID account logins and passwords!!!!

Absolutely. I encourage people to use a password manager and there are ways in which you can designate family members to have access to it under certain circumstances, like death or disability.

- Make sure you have titles for all vehicles, campers, etc. in one place that is easily accessible.

Agreed.

- MOST IMPORTANTLY!!!! - Talk with those closest to you and make all your wishes KNOWN. Talk to those whom you’ve designated, as well as those close to you whom you did not designate. - Do this to explain why your decisions were made and to avoid any lingering questions or hurt feelings.

Great suggestion.

Hope this helps! Hope this lights a spark to encourage all of you to take care of these things to make it easier for those we’ll leave behind!

*** I am NOT an attorney. The above is all simply lessons that I’ve learned on my own. Of course only you can make decisions for yourself. My hope is that the above list at least helps you start an important conversation with your loved ones and an attorney that can help you complete all the necessary steps. ***

^^^This

My attorney gave me four (4) General Power of Attorney documents. He said in all the years he's done this it seems that 4 is a good number.
When your beneficiaries take the PoA to present it, the place may keep it.
Your representative(s) dont NOT want to run out of PoA documents.

This is surprising to me. Most institutions will accept a copy, but I guess it doesn't hurt to have multiple originals - as long as they are all consistent.

Also, In my case, it was especially helpful to do the TOD with my out of state property [Wyo land/cabin] to avoid probate.

Good point. Having out of state (ancillary) probate is a PITA. But you need not do a TOD to avoid probate. As mentioned below, you can use a revocable trust, own the property in an entity (LLC), etc.

In case anyone is wondering, the cost to do my Will and stuff was less than $200.
Money well spent to save your family lots of headaches.

Wow. That's super cheap. I almost wonder how much time the attorney spends on estate planning as a specialty. In trying to draw a RS analogy, I'm thinking that if someone was giving a range for what it would cost to chop and thread a barrel, $200 for an estate plan would - IMHO - be about the same as a $25 quote for the gunsmith work.

As a financial planner, I consul people on their estate plan with their attorneys. One very important topic that creates issues are Power of Attorney (POA) documents. Yes, you can have a blanket POA, however, many financial institutions require their own paperwork. Also, many of these expire after two or three years. For example JP Morgan requires their own document, as does Chase bank, and Schwab.

The point is make sure you research or speak with your financial institutions and understand their own requirements for when you are still living and after death.

This is a great point. From the standpoint of the financial institutions, they are paranoid about someone using a POA to commit fraud. Some banks do seem to insist on using their own forms, which is often in contravention of state law. In any event, it's best to confirm the POA is acceptable BEFORE it's needed.

Get a Will and put everything in a Trust.

Get a Will - absolutely. Put everything in a trust - maybe. As mentioned above, the Will controls only probate assets that don't pass by operation of to someone at death. One way to avoid probate is to contribute those assets to a revocable trust - which means those assets don't go through probate. BUT you have to transfer the title to those assets before you die, which can be a pain. Other trusts (like irrevocable trusts) raise a host of other issues. Don't create a trust without an attorney who knows the law - including tax law.

There many types of Trusts.

A person just can’t say ‘put it in a Trust’.

Be informed

Exactly. There is also a lot of BS about trusts on the internet (including prior posts on RS). There is no magic bullet. Everything has a tradeoff.

 

[cnelk]

It’s encouraging to see the interest in what is the inevitable for all of us.

 

[Boarmaster]

I recently went to my Estate Planning Attorney and updated my Will.

If you haven’t done this I highly recommend you do.

Important things I’ve learned and completed and would encourage everyone to do ASAP (some may depend on your state) to avoid probate.



- Make sure all bank accounts have direct beneficiaries. The beneficiary need only go to the bank with your death certificate and an ID of their own.



- TOD = Transfer On Death deed if you own a home or property (no mortgage) Completing this document and filing it with your county saves your heirs THOUSANDS. This document allows you to transfer ownership of your home to your designee. All they need to do is take their ID and your death certificate to the county building and the deed is signed over. Doing this will avoid the home having to go through probate.


- Living Will: Allows one to put in writing exactly what you want done in the event you cannot speak for yourself when it comes to healthcare decisions


- Durable Power of Attorney: Allows one to designate a person to make legal decisions if one is no longer competent to do so.



- Power of Attorney for Healthcare: This document allows one to designate someone to make healthcare decisions for their person.



- Last Will and Testament: Designates to whom personal belongings will go too.



- Funeral Planning Declaration: allows one to say exactly one’s wishes as far as disposition of the body and the services.



- Make a list of all banks and account numbers, all investment institutions with account numbers, lists of credit cards, utility accounts, etc. Leave clear instructions as to how and when these things are paid. Make sure heirs knows where life insurance policies are located.



- Make 100% sure SOMEONE knows your Apple ID, computer, bank ID account logins and passwords!!!!



- Make sure you have titles for all vehicles, campers, etc. in one place that is easily accessible.



- MOST IMPORTANTLY!!!! - Talk with those closest to you and make all your wishes KNOWN. Talk to those whom you’ve designated, as well as those close to you whom you did not designate. - Do this to explain why your decisions were made and to avoid any lingering questions or hurt feelings.



Hope this helps! Hope this lights a spark to encourage all of you to take care of these things to make it easier for those we’ll leave behind!



*** I am NOT an attorney. The above is all simply lessons that I’ve learned on my own. Of course only you can make decisions for yourself. My hope is that the above list at least helps you start an important conversation with your loved ones and an attorney that can help you complete all the necessary steps. ***

Great info. I need to focus on this. I am single so not as simple as a wife taking over. Childless so no kid to take over. I have a mother in good health that despite her worst fears will very likely out live me. She might need my finances. I have three nieces. Two who will have good inheritance from parents and one who very unlikely will not. I have considered making the one who will not my heir if not my mother.
I’m not on my death bed at 62 but heck anything can happen. I have beneficiaries on all my funds and other financial accounts but nothing on my checking accounts. Much work to be done based on your post,

 

[Silver Wings]

My mom passed away 6/20 and my dad 4/24. Their will and irrevocable trust are a mess. Turns out my dad printed up some BS he found online and had it witnessed and notarized. Long story short, we are going through probate and it’s not going well.
It’s a real PIA, but on the positive side it has spurred me to ensure that all my stuff is fully dialed in. My wife and I did a family trust 23 years ago and it needs some serious updating. I’m going to schedule a full review and update with a good estate planning attorney so my kids don’t have to deal with the BS I’m dealing with now.

 

[Hydra6]

Great advice. I dealt with the aftermath of my wife's parents passing then my parents passing. On my dad, an attorney who was a deacon with my dad insured that his affairs were in order for me (only child and executor). Some preplanning makes this process so much better for your loved ones. Before I retired from the GAARNG, I had our JAG prepare wills, etc. for my wife and I not for us but for our kids.

 

[AK_Skeeter]

Great advice.

Once a year my wife and I go thru a scenario "when I die"
what are things the spouse should know instead of having to guess and figure thing
out in time of grief. Everything from combination to the gun safe, bank and computer account access,
where I want my ashes scattered, who gets my dogs, guns, etc. and so on.
Our wills cover the major stuff, but it is nice to plan out the little stuff.

Also informing a close relative who your attorney is in case we are both killed
in an accident so the relative could locate the will in a time of grief.

 

[sierracharlie338]

Good info sir. Just walked my dad through all this and it has really given him piece of mind to know things will be taken care of when that day comes.

Another word of advice, if monetarily possible, take the steps to avoid probate for your beneficiaries. In Texas that mean having a trust in addition to a living will.

 

[fwafwow]

Good info sir. Just walked my dad through all this and it has really given him piece of mind to know things will be taken care of when that day comes.

Another word of advice, if monetarily possible, take the steps to avoid probate for your beneficiaries. In Texas that mean having a trust in addition to a living will.

Minor correction - a Living Will is a health care document. You would need a trust (often called a “Living” “Revocable” or “Revocable Living” trust to make things more confusin.

Also note that this recommendation of avoiding probate is state specific (probate is easy in some states), and not without tradeoffs (in addition to needing another document, you have to transfer title to the trust, during life, of all assets that would otherwise pass through probate. That can be a PITA.