The Need for an Estate Plan

September 27, 2013. It is a startling, though not surprising, fact that an overwhelming number of people have absolutely no documents in place to shepherd their assets and estate into the future. Though numbers vary, there is a fairly accurate assessment that between thirty and forty percent of the U.S. population do not have even the simplest of estate planning pieces in place, namely a will. Though seemingly schizophrenic, a majority of Americans –roughly sixty percent – do, however, believe such planning to be important and necessary.

The reasons have been surveyed by analysts, but in the end are essentially intuitive. People are often caught up in the pressing issues of the moment, which are often short-term. Moreover, there is a reluctance to tread in the area of such long-term planning as it is an uncomfortable admission of one’s mortality. Lastly, in the young, there is a feeling that such planning is not yet necessary since accumulated wealth is not significant or may even be non-existent. It demands notice, however, that planning is absent even in the aged and experienced. Of the baby-boomer generation, only forty percent have a will or other document in place.

Without attempting to oversell the point, action should accompany the sentiment, and all people, all ages, should have the estate plan in place that they instinctively know is important. Though tax considerations are important, the argument for an estate plan goes beyond just sophisticated tax planning just as it goes beyond whether one has enough wealth to feel it is deserved. The ultimate heart of the issue is ensuring that your property, rightly earned over a lifetime, passes on to those you care about. This is easily addressed through a will, but competent estate planning should go a little further. A revocable living trust arrangement, though often passed upon, addresses those concerns you didn’t even know you had and while it is a mainstay for the wealthy, it is also quite necessary and important to the average individual.

There are two reasons to consider and implement a trust. First, a will is not private, a trust is. Secondly, a trust is efficient both in time and money. It side-steps the probate process which a court uses to validate a will. This process is lengthy for large estates, say twelve to eighteen months, drains value from the assets, and opens the will up to contests. A revocable living trust may be drawn up and implemented in less than three months, and while it may bear a greater up front cost, can generate significant savings in the long run. To learn more about what your estate planning needs may be, contact Goosmann Law at info@goosmannlaw.com or by calling 712.226.4000.