Whether you have minor children, adult children or no children, estate planning for the single person can be daunting.
For single people, sometimes deciding who your heirs should be, who will care for your children or who would come forward to care for you should you need it, can be difficult.
At this meeting, we will talk about how to select successors and agents, how to plan for a potential incapacity, and how to spot and mitigate risk during your lifetime.
Here's what would happen if you die or become incapacitated without a personalized estate plan.
Conservatorship: If you are unable to manage your own financial affairs or advocate for your own health care decisions, you might be conserved. This is an expensive court process that exposes your frailties to the public. The court assigns someone to act as your agent to make decisions for you.
Probate: Estates valued over $150,000 may be subject to probate. Your assets, creditors, and beneficiaries become public record in court filings. Your assets will be frozen until the court grants an executor permission to make distributions. The executor and an attorney are each entitled to 4% of the first $100,000 of the gross value of the probate estate, 3% of the next $100,000, 2% of the next $800,000, and 1% of the next $9 million.
Minor children: Minor children will be placed where it is "necessary and convenient" until guardianship proceedings are held.
Patricia De Fonte, estate planning attorney, brings a relationship-based approach to helping clients create tailored estate plans based on their values. These plans protect her clients, their loved ones, their assets, and their legacies. Read more about her process and services at www.defontelaw.com.