Planning an estate isn’t necessarily something we look forward to, but estate planning can be a simple undertaking.  When you meet with your estate planning attorney, they will help you navigate the process by avoiding some these major mistakes.

A. Developing a Plan

Whether to avoid controversy within the family unit or simply having no idea how to get started, many people fail to develop a Will, resulting in the State determining how your family will be honored.  Meeting with an attorney to prepare even the simplest of plans will allow for your wishes to be honored and not the state’s.  By working with an attorney you can take steps to avoid another mistake, which is not taking steps to avoid probate.  Probate can be expensive, lengthy, and difficult.  Having a solid estate plan in place can help those you leave behind avoid the costs and hassles of probate. 

B. Avoiding Probate

Another mistake that you will want to avoid when estate planning is failing to name intended beneficiaries of specific accounts.  Many people remember to leave the obvious things (i.e. houses, cars, insurance policies) to specific individuals, but not setting up beneficiaries for retirement and bank accounts can be equally as important.   We work our entire lives to save for retirement, and most of us do this with specific retirement accounts.  Failing to name a beneficiary to these retirement accounts can leave your life savings open to question or probate rather than going directly to your loved ones.  Your estate planning attorney can make sure that your beneficiaries and contingent beneficiaries are in place.  

C. Intended Beneficiary

It is also very important to set up Payable On Death (POD) beneficiaries for your specific bank accounts, such as checking, savings, CDs, and safe deposit boxes.  This will allow your beneficiaries instant access to these funds when the time comes.  Having an estate planning attorney will make sure that none of these steps are missed.

D. Updating your Will

Finally, after meeting with your attorney and setting up your estate plan, you want to make sure you avoid the mistake of failing to update the plan from time to time.  As we go through life, our assets change, relationships change, and plans change.  By meeting with your estate planning attorney on a regular basis your can have your estate up to date at all times.  This will ensure that when the time comes your most recent wishes will be honored.  All of these mistakes can easily be avoided by simply working with your estate planning attorney to ensure that when the time comes you will have the peace of mind of knowing your wishes will be honored as if you were still here.