One consequence of the increased longevity that people enjoy today is that they need more financial support to survive comfortably through the additional years that may be granted to them. Reportedly, only one in three of us is able to survive financially into our 90s. In fact, a study conducted by a well-known association of retired persons found that two out of three persons were more worried about running out of money than about dying! These facts highlight the importance of estate planning in Texas and other jurisdictions.
Estate planning focus shifts emphasis to asset preservation
Estate planning saves time, money and legal obstacles
There are some very practical reasons why a person residing in Texas or elsewhere in the country should have an estate plan. Without a will or trust at death, for example, there are some very negative consequences that one's loved ones may be compelled to endure. The lack of estate planning puts one's heirs at the mercy of the intestate laws of the state where one resides at death.
Estate planning is a maze best traveled with professional help
An estate plan under Texas law is a way of designating how one's assets may be distributed at death. Estate planning also takes into account uses of those assets during life and provides for a smooth transition if the owner of the assets becomes incapacitated and unable to take care of his or her own financial affairs while still alive. One of the most important considerations of an estate plan is that it gives the individual the power to direct the disposition of his or her assets as the person desires and not as state law would dictate it.
Family meetings good for long-term care planning process
A Fidelity survey this year regarding caregiving needs of parents and the ability of children to provide those needs found some increased conflicts over the 2014 survey. Likely speculation says that the better economy in Texas and elsewhere may have a paradoxical effect on whether adult children want to sit down with their parents and have a discussion about getting older, long-term care and dying. In 2014, 52 percent of children said those discussions should occur but this year only 37 percent felt that way.
