Estate planning can be overwhelming, from gathering documents to dealing with the emotions associated with it. Nonetheless, you can make your experience more manageable by working with professionals.
So, who should be on your team?
A financial advisor
Most of the decisions you will make when estate planning will be financial. Thus, it’s crucial to have a financial advisor. This professional can educate you on different plans, allowing you to determine the best ways to distribute your assets. Further, they can help you with your retirement, investment and trust accounts.
Additionally, your financial advisor can help you compare life insurance and long-term care insurance policies to choose the most suitable ones within your budget.
A tax professional
Distributing your assets in an estate plan can result in significant tax implications for your beneficiaries. To ensure your loved ones benefit as much as possible from your estate plan, you should work with a tax professional.
Since they are well-informed on how to legally reduce taxes, they can help you draft a tax-efficient estate plan. Your financial advisor will work closely with your tax expert to meet your goals.
An attorney
All the decisions you make during estate planning need to be validated. You don’t want to make mistakes that can invalidate your documents. For example, not having the right people act as witnesses when signing your will or choosing an executor who can’t be appointed by the court.
An attorney can help you understand estate planning in-depth and, in turn, make decisions that can be approved when probate time comes.
You need a reliable estate planning team. Learn more about your wishes and goals to assemble a team that works for you. The professionals in your team can also work with your executor during estate administration to make their work more manageable.