[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/you-need-more-than-a-will-for-estate-planning-white-plains-ny-greenwich-ct\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/you-need-more-than-a-will-for-estate-planning-white-plains-ny-greenwich-ct\/","headline":"You Need More than a Will for Estate Planning","name":"You Need More than a Will for Estate Planning","description":"\u201cRegardless of the pandemic, experts say it\u2019s important to plan for when you\u2019re not here\u2014that is, give thought to what would happen to your bank accounts, your home and your belongings, as well as, perhaps, your dependents.\u201d As the coronavirus continues to sweep across through the U.S. and the death tolls continue to rise, many […]","datePublished":"2020-09-15","dateModified":"2023-07-29","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/author\/amorusolaw\/#Person","name":"Amoruso & Amoruso LLP","url":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/author\/amorusolaw\/","identifier":5,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/12de032c04195e9c39a06a6d6eea182f7b4fa655c20e245f8094a244b5cdd0cb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/12de032c04195e9c39a06a6d6eea182f7b4fa655c20e245f8094a244b5cdd0cb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Amoruso & Amoruso LLP","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/amoruso-logo.svg","url":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/amoruso-logo.svg","width":0,"height":0}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6a01901dd0a082970b0263e96512e5.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/6a01901dd0a082970b0263e96512e5.jpg","height":600,"width":900},"url":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/you-need-more-than-a-will-for-estate-planning-white-plains-ny-greenwich-ct\/","about":["End of Life Planning","Estate Planning","Executor","Guardians","Health Care Proxy","Living Will","Power of Attorney \/ POA","Trustee","Trusts","Will"],"wordCount":826,"keywords":["End-of-Life","Estate Planning","Executor","Guardian","Health Care Proxy","Living Will","Power of Attorney","Trustee","Trusts","Will"],"articleBody":"\u201cRegardless of the pandemic, experts say it\u2019s important to plan for when you\u2019re not here\u2014that is, give thought to what would happen to your bank accounts, your home and your belongings, as well as, perhaps, your dependents.\u201dAs the coronavirus continues to sweep across through the U.S. and the death tolls continue to rise, many people are starting to put their estate plans in place, as reported by CNBC.com in the article “A will doesn\u2019t cover all your bases when it comes to end-of-life decisions. Here\u2019s what else you need“.It\u2019s true\u2013your will, or last will and testament, is just one of several legal documents you need to help loved ones know what your wishes are. If there is no will, all kinds of problems are created. If you have minor children and no will, the court will decide who will care for them. With no will, the laws of your state determine who will receive your assets\u2014even if it\u2019s a relative you\u2019ve never met\u2014or one you\u2019ve loathed for decades.For those who have partners but are not married, no will means your assets won\u2019t go to them. They also won\u2019t have legal standing to fight back. The courts typically pass assets on to your closest blood relatives. That might not be what you want.However, a will is only one part of your entire estate plan. You don\u2019t need to live on \u201can estate\u201d to have an estate. Actually, your estate refers to everything you own\u2014financial accounts, possessions, real estate and digital assets. Putting a plan in place for those assets helps lessen the chances your family will fracture when you have died. Your assets will also go where you want them. It\u2019s a kindness to your loved ones.A will lets you convey your wishes about who gets what when you die, except for assets that pass outside of a will. These are accounts where you have named a beneficiary, like insurance policies, retirement accounts and jointly owned property. The beneficiary designations and joint ownership (with rights of survivorship) always supersede your will, which is where many people make big mistakes. If you don\u2019t update your beneficiary designations as you move through life, the wrong person might inherit significant assets. There also won\u2019t be anything your intended heirs can do about it.Another big part of your will involves choosing a person to be in charge of carrying out your intentions\u2014the executor. This is a job that requires someone who is responsible, reliable and comfortable with handling financial and legal matters.You\u2019ll also need a health care directive, like a health care proxy and, in some states, also a living will, to outline your wishes if you become incapacitated because of illness or injury. This gives loved ones the instructions they need if, for example, you are on life support and a decision has to be made about whether to continue or to let you pass. Don\u2019t forget a Power of Attorney. This document allows a person of your choice to carry out all of your financial and legal affairs on your behalf. You want to pick someone who is smart and trustworthy. They might need to do everything from selling your home to managing your investments.Estate planning also includes preparing all of the important documents in your life so that your executor can find them easily, including your will itself, other legal documents, information about bank accounts, investment accounts and even your Social Security number. The more organized you can be, the more easily your loved ones will be able to administer your estate.If you want your children to receive money from you but are concerned about their ability to manage an inheritance, you may want to add a trust to your estate plan. Your assets go into the trust instead of directly into their hands. You also name a trustee who will oversee the trust. The trustee will decide when your children receive the money according to your instructions. The distribution could be tied to achieving certain goals\u2014like graduating from college or getting their first apartment.One last point: many people today are downloading estate planning forms from the internet. The problem is, you don\u2019t know if they are up-to-date, or even admissible in your state. Every state has its own estate laws, and no one document works in all states. Working with an estate planning attorney who knows the laws in your state eliminates the risk that a judge will toss out your will because it does not comply with state law.Reference: CNBC.com (July 27, 2020) “A will doesn\u2019t cover all your bases when it comes to end-of-life decisions. Here\u2019s what else you need.”For more information on elder law, retirement planning and estate planning, please visit my estate planning website."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"You Need More than a Will for Estate Planning","item":"https:\/\/www.amorusolaw.com\/blog\/you-need-more-than-a-will-for-estate-planning-white-plains-ny-greenwich-ct\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]