You have worked hard your entire life to build up your assets. When you are gone, all of those assets become your estate that you can pass on to your loved ones and beneficiaries. Do you really want to see a large chunk of those assets eaten up in the taxes, funeral expenses, legal fees and other costs that are incurred after you die? Here are some ways to keep those fees down so more of your assets end up in the hands of the ones you intended them for.

Ensure Your Estate Plan is Up to Date

Many people make an estate plan and then file it away in a dusty drawer never to be thought of again. The problem is that as time goes on your estate plan should change to reflect what is going on around you. The further away you get from the time that your estate plan was created, the more inaccurate it may be.

If your estate plan is out of date, there are many costly steps that your executor and beneficiaries are going to need to pay for to have it corrected. In the worst cases, it could lead to your family fighting over assets in court, costing them financially and emotionally.

Remember to regularly visit your estate plan and update it to reflect your wishes and the wishes of the current state of your family.

Have a Discussion with your Family and Loved Ones

You know where your estate plan and legal documents are located. You also know the elder law attorney that you used to get those documents prepared. Your family and beneficiaries may not. This, in many cases, can lead to your well laid out plans going undiscovered. This can tie the hand of your executor, powers of attorney and legal representatives if something happens to you to cause your death or incapacitation.

Make sure that your close and trusted loved ones know where all of your important documents are and where they can find them if the worst happens. Along with it, provide a list of the passwords for your computer and major online accounts so they can be accessed as well.

Plan for your Debt

You can easily calculate what your taxes and your debts are going to be once you are gone. There are things that you can do to set up monies that can be used to pay these off so that your family or executors are not stuck doing this out of pocket until your estate is settled.

Think about setting up a joint account with a trusted loved one for just this purpose. You could also set up a payable on death account which would accomplish the same thing. Plan ahead for some of the costs that are going to occur.

Get help from Your Elder Law Attorney

Estate plans can be tricky business. That’s why elder law attorneys at Stano Law group have your best interests in mind.