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November 30, 2016 Posted In Estate Planning,Powers of Attorney,Wills
by Colorado Estate Matters
Four Essential Documents to Prevent Estate Planning Errors
When you are ready to put an official estate plan in place to protect yourself and your family in the future, there can be a lot to consider, even if you don not have a sizable estate or a large family. To help you get started on the right path, the following points out the handful of documents that should form the basis of your estate plan (if you are serious about having a comprehensive, valid estate plan). This can help you avoid some big mistakes in the future while effectively preserving your legacy and protecting your loved ones.
The will is typically the cornerstone of an estate plan because it basically explains your exact wishes for transferring your assets to your surviving loved ones (or other parties). Other things your will can do include (but are not necessarily limited to):
Though not a legal document per se, the Letter of Instructions can be a crucial part of an estate plan because it can specify your wishes for how you want to be laid to rest. In particular, this document can explain whether you prefer to be cremated or buried, your wishes for the funeral or wake, what you would like on a headstone, etc.
Although it may seem morbid to think about these issues (let alone to write them down in a formal document), this document can save your loved ones an enormous amount of stress in the future (as they can be confident they are carrying out your last wishes and they won’t have to try to make tough decisions about laying you to rest as they are dealing with serious grief).
Unlike the will and the Letter of Instructions that will likely only come into play following a death, the financial power of attorney may be needed during your lifetime if you ever become incapacitated and unable to make important financial decisions for yourself. In fact, with a financial power of attorney, you can appoint one (or more) person(s) to oversee your finances if you are ever in a serious accident, develop a debilitating illness (like dementia, for instance) or are in a coma.
What’s more, is that you can specify the exact financial matters that you do (and don’t) want your agent to have. Some of these matters can include (and are by no means limited to):
Without a financial power of attorney in place, the court would choose someone (possibly even a stranger) to make these (or other) financial decisions on your behalf (and, in all likelihood, that could result in choices you would not have made or approved of).
A medical power of attorney will designate someone to make important medical decisions on your behalf if you should be unable to do so at any point in the future (due to, for instance, an accident, illness or coma). As with the financial power of attorney, a medical power of attorney:
To get more information regarding your best estate planning options, contact a trusted estate planning lawyer in Denver at Colorado Estate Matters, Ltd. We are ready to help you develop, revise or administer an estate plan – and we can help you protect your interests at every step in the process.
We can discuss your estate planning needs and different options during our consultation. To schedule this meeting, call us at (303) 713-9147 or email us using the contact form at the top of this page.
From our offices in Denver, we serve clients throughout the southwest and southeast Metro Area, including (but not limited to) people in Highlands Ranch, Littleton, Castle Rock, Parker, Aurora, Greenwood Village, Englewood, Centennial, Wheat Ridge, Golden and Arvada.