The key problem that arises with respect to elderly planning is the high cost of extended care facilities during one's later years. Many people do not begin to even thing about long-term care until they hit their eighties, but due to the five-year look back period it would be far better to take this up in one's early to mid-sixties. There are numerous rules in Texas that provide the qualifications for one to be able to get Medicaid services, and an early consultation with an elder law attorney would be a good way to becoming well informed and prepared.
Long-term care planning requires careful evaluation of all facts
Elder law planning works best when a family meeting can be held
Elder law professionals and financial advisers in Texas and elsewhere generally recommend that a family have an honest and forthright conversation with an elderly loved one to discuss the elderly person's wishes and intentions for those later, advanced years in life. Elder law planning is best done early, when the individual is still in full control of his or her faculties and physical health. It will prove to be critically helpful when advanced age makes it difficult for one to function independently.
Estate administration usually follows the dictates of a will
When a person dies in Texas, his or her will provides for appointment of an executor to handle the estate's administration. If there was no will, the statutory law of Texas designates persons who may qualify as an administrator of the estate. An executor or administrator will have to take certain steps and perform certain duties to properly administer the estate. Both executors and administrators may be generically referred to as the personal representative of the estate.
Estate planning should be managed by an experienced professional
Estate planning for Texas residents requires experienced professional assistance. The process goes beyond the preparation of a simple will. Instead, estate planning entails a number of legal instruments and strategic planning decisions that must be geared to the special financial needs of the individual or married couple.
