Oakland County MI Estate Planning Law Blog

Most individuals are generally familiar with what estate planning entails. It involves a person sitting down with an attorney to draft a will, power of attorney, health care directive or other legal documents. These guide your loved ones, doctors and financial institutions regarding your final wishes. A concept that you may not yet be familiar with is that of long-term care planning. It's a process through which you can decide how you want to be cared for as you age.

Medical care costs are particularly high for seniors as they often require more frequent doctor's or hospital visits as they age. These health care expenses can be financially devastating if you don't plan for them early on. If you add rehabilitation, a nursing home placement or at-home care to the mix, then things become even more financially crippling.

When a loved one from Michigan passes away, their family members have to deal with their final arrangements. An individual with has an estate plan in place will likely have named a personal representative. This person is responsible for making sure the decedent's estate is probated properly. They have several duties that they must complete throughout the process.

We understand that it can be a challenge to figure everything out while you're still dealing with your loss. Having an attorney probating the estate can ensure that everything is handled properly.

A will is the backbone of the estate plan that lets your loved ones know your wishes when you pass away. There are some specific points that you should include in your will. Remember, you also have other estate planning tools, including trusts, to help you care for your beneficiaries and heirs.

One of the primary purposes of the will is to name the executor. You should name a primary person, but don't forget to include an alternative in case the primary person isn't able to handle the duties. The individuals you name should be at least 18 years old. Many people opt to name a spouse or adult child, but make sure this isn't going to be too much pressure on them because they will be dealing with losing you while they have to handle these duties.

After spending a great deal of time determining whether you need a trust, figuring out what kind of trust you need and creating the document itself, you may think that, once you execute it, you are done. You can put it away and not have to worry about it again.

Unfortunately, if you do that, you will have wasted all that time, money and effort. In order for a trust to work for you and your beneficiaries as intended, you need to "fund" it. This post explores what that means.