AVOID THESE 4 COMMON ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKES

Hi, it’s Guy DiMartino. I am a Northwest Indiana state planning and probate lawyer. Today, I’d like to talk about four common mistakes that I see with folks when it comes to their estate plan. But before I get started, if you ever have any questions about an Northwest Indiana estate plan or probate matter, you can always reach out to me at indianastatemeeting.com. We can set up an appointment in person, by phone or by video conference.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE NUMBER ONE

So here are the four common mistakes. The first one really has to do with a mindset and really trying to understand your goals and what you’re hoping to accomplish with your estate plan. Do you have a disabled spouse? Do you have disabled kids? Do you want to provide for your grandkids college and education and things along those lines? So the first thing is designing an estate plan without really coming to grips with what your goals are and what you hope to accomplish.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE NUMBER TWO

The second mistake that I see a lot of times is dealing with certain folks, having the wrong people in your circle, whether it is the wrong CPA, or the wrong attorney, or the wrong financial planner. In some circumstances, financial planners are commissioned based so they get paid on what they sell or trade, on the other hand, others are fee for service financial planners who do not receive compensation based on commission. Sometimes a financial planner will recommend a vehicle for a financial plan that might not really jive with your goals.

This is why your estate planning goals is number one. Once you have your goals, you need to discuss your goals and your concerns with your attorney, CPA, and your financial planner. So if you’re not clear with your goals, then they might have and puts you in the wrong direction, or sometimes folks will send you in the wrong direction for their own benefit.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE NUMBER THREE

The Third mistake that some folks make is failing to deal or account for any probate issues. Now, probate is not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s something that should be discussed. You know, what might be easier if you’re just leaving a home or a piece of property to go ahead and go through the probate process, because that might be cleaner as opposed to setting up a trust-based plan.

ESTATE PLANNING MISTAKE NUMBER 4

The fourth mistake is focusing and trying to control the future.
Trying to think in the future, sure. Regarding reasonable contingencies, for instance, you know what should happen if you lose your mind, or what should happen if you lose your physical ability to do things, or what should happen if somebody in the family becomes stricken with a disability, or has special needs.

The truth is that you can’t control or manage every potential contingency that can happen. But there are certain contingencies that you have to deal with and that you should deal with. For instance, what happens if you can’t make your own decisions, or what happens if you become terminally ill? What happens if you should die a sudden death, do you have the proper insurance or the proper money there to help support your spouse and your kids and things along those lines. These are contingencies that happen pretty much every day and should be at least discussed. When going into your estate plan.