Estate planning attorneys at Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC provide help with the creation of a comprehensive estate plan. Making a detailed estate plan can be important because you want to ensure that you are able to protect the people you love. Our firm can help you to understand the different tools that you can use to create a plan and can assist you in making sure that your estate plan addresses the needs of your heirs or beneficiaries. 
Unfortunately, far too many people do not get the help they require to make a comprehensive estate plan that actually provides their desired legacy. Many people assume if they just make a last will and testament and specify who they want to inherit their assets, this is sufficient to take care of their families and provide for the people they care about. The reality is, this is often simply not the case and it is important to try to ensure that you make effective use of legal tools that actually allow you to achieve your desired goals for the future. To find out more about how you can make a more comprehensive estate plan that is actually going to allow you to achieve your desired legacy, give us a call. You can also read on to find out about a few key circumstances when making a last will and testament is definitely not going to be sufficient for your estate planning needs.
When Your Family Needs to Inherit Quickly
If your loved ones need to inherit your assets in a timely manner, a last will and testament is not the best or most efficient way to transfer your wealth. Your assets that you pass to loved ones in a will must pass through the probate process, which Investopedia indicates could take around a year to complete. If your family was counting on an inheritance — perhaps because you were a breadwinner and they no longer have your income coming in — waiting a year to receive money and property from your estate could be financially devastating. You’ll want to make use of other legal tools, such as a living trust that allows assets to transfer through the trust administration process, to ensure your family has the inheritance they need sooner so they do not suffer financial hardship.
When You Run Your Own Business
If you run your own business, transferring company assets in a last will and testament is often not the best approach to take. It could take a long time until the business ownership is transferred during probate and during that delay, the business could suffer. If your business is a valuable one, the company and your ownership stake in it could also trigger estate tax. This can be a big problem, especially if there is not enough liquid assets in your estate to pay the taxes due and your heirs or beneficiaries are forced to liquidate the business or take expensive loans. You want to make sure you have made a comprehensive business succession plan to ensure that the company is quickly and seamlessly transferred to the next generation of owners, and not lost due to estate tax, so you can ensure your company survives long after you are gone.
When You Have Disabled Loved Ones to Provide For
If you have disabled loved ones, giving them a gift in the form of a direct inheritance could cause a loss of access to means-tested benefits such as Medicaid. Your disabled loved one may also not be able to manage the money or property that you have provided. The creation of a special needs trust could solve these problems by allowing you to provide financially for a disabled relative without the assets in the trust counting as resources for purposes of qualifying for means-tested benefits. The creation of a special needs trust also allows you to name a responsible trustee to manage the assets held in the trust and use them to enhance the quality of life of your disabled relative.
Getting Help from Estate Planning Attorneys
Estate planning attorneys at Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC can provide personalized help determining if a last will and testament is sufficient to serve as your estate plan and can provide assistance drafting a last will and testament that is enforceable and unlikely to be contested. We can also provide assistance in determining when a will isn’t enough and in making use of other legal tools that will allow you to better provide for your loved ones.
To find out more about how our firm can help with the estate planning process, join us for a free seminar: http://www.myestateplan.com/seminars-2/. You can also give us a call at (631) 265-0599 or contact us online to get your plans underway so you can take control over your legacy and provide your family with the inheritance they deserve.
Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney
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