Tustin Estate Planning Law Blog

The idea of creating an estate plan is sometimes offputting to certain individuals. They may not like the idea of having to think about what should happen to their belongings after their passing or what decisions should be made if they become seriously ill. As a result, when they do decide to start planning, they may want to go with a bare-bones approach that could help them complete the process quickly. However, it may be wise to go beyond a will and consider trust preparation as well.

Some California residents may automatically think that trusts are only for extremely wealthy people. Fortunately, that is not the case, and almost anyone could benefit from using this planning tool. It can allow interested individuals to better control what happens with their assets by leaving specific instructions as to how and when they should be distributed, which differs from the automatic distribution of assets at the end of probate.

A person's estate plan often relies on other people to ensure that the correct steps are taken to administer the remaining assets. Many California residents choose to use trusts as part of their plans, and they need to appoint trustees to handle the trust administration process. Choosing the right person can be difficult as trustees have a lot of responsibilities to handle.

One important aspect to consider is that the trustee will have to work with various people during the administration process. He or she will need to have contact with current beneficiaries and may need to work with remainder beneficiaries as well. Additionally, the trustee will have to make regular reports to the court and the beneficiaries to show how the trust is doing.

Many events in life are better navigated when instructions are available. For particularly difficult times in life, those instructions can seem like a gift to lessen stress and help individuals through a trying period. Wills and other estate planning documents can provide useful instructions to California families who need that information and help after the passing of a loved one.

An estate plan can help surviving loved ones find a sense of purpose by giving them specific duties and jobs. Not every job is active, such as being a beneficiary who receives assets from the estate, but some jobs have important tasks to accomplish. For instance, the executor of the estate will need to tackle a number of responsibilities, and putting someone in charge who can handle those responsibilities and providing that person with instruction could bring at least a bit of relief.

Making the decision to create an estate plan is one that most people will not regret. In fact, estate planning can better ensure that California residents are able to express their end-of-life and wishes to their family members in a legally-binding way. One of the easier places to start with this process is to consider the assets to include.

Valuable assets often come to mind when individuals begin thinking about how they want to distribute their property. Certainly, assets like real estate and vehicles are important to consider, but it is important not to overlook other smaller, sentimental items. Personal property like books, furniture and jewelry are all important assets to keep in mind when estate planning. Remembering to include them could prevent family members from potentially fighting over them later.