Studies show that nearly 62% of Americans don’t have an estate plan. When we ask people if there is a specific reason they haven’t planned, we generally get one or two of the same reasons. For most people, their reasons are based on a misconception about estate planning and what actually happens to your assets if you die. This week, we’ll discuss 5 of the most common reasons people don’t do an estate plan, and the misconceptions around those reasons.
- I’m too young and/or I don’t have enough assets. The truth is, every adult should have at least a basic estate plan in place. This is because estate planning is more than just deciding who gets your stuff when you die. Proper estate planning is really about how much control you want over what happens when you die or become incapacitated from injury or serious illness. For example, if you are seriously injured and are temporarily (or permanently) unable to make your own decisions about your healthcare or treatment, wouldn’t you rather decide who gets to make those decisions for you rather than letting a judge – a total stranger – decide for you? This is just one of many examples of why every adult needs some type of estate planning. And let’s be honest, you have no idea when something could happen to you, so planning now, while you are able, is the best course of action to ensure your wishes are honored and your family is taken care of the way you want.
- My Spouse gets it all anyway. Are you sure about that? If you don’t have a will or trust, it’s not guaranteed that your spouse will inherit your assets or property. This depends on factors including how your assets are titled, whether you have children, and whether the children are adults or minors. Each state has its own laws. If you do own property jointly with your spouse, you must also make sure that it’s jointly owned in the right way. We’ve seen situations where a husband and wife owned property jointly, but not in the way that passes the property to the surviving spouse directly. Not only can this cause confusion, but it can also cause conflict if there are estranged children or other family members involved.
- It’s too expensive to hire a lawyer. We know, lawyers are expensive. But do you know what is even more expensive? Going to Court. If you don’t have an estate plan, or if your estate plan doesn’t work the way you thought it would because you did it yourself online, your loved ones will certainly end up in court to handle your affairs. This is called probate. The process is slow, 12-18 months on average, and can be quite costly depending on the estate. The average fee in Maryland ranges from 2-5% of the gross value of the estate, and that gets paid out before the beneficiaries get their inheritance. So if your estate is $500,000 – which isn’t unheard of if you own a home – then the fees could be $10,000-25,000. Sitting down with an experienced estate planning attorney will certainly cost much less.
- I don’t want to tempt fate. We’ve been doing this for awhile, and never had a client, nor have we heard of anyone, who did their estate plan and then dropped dead as a result. Often people are uncomfortable thinking about their own death and what would happen when they are gone. And we completely understand that. That’s why we make every effort to make the planning process as easy and painless as possible for my clients. We’ve have had some clients who were visibly uncomfortable during their meeting, but once documents were signed, they told mentioned how much better they feel knowing that their affairs are in order, and their family will not have a mess to deal with when they are gone. And this is why we love what we do.
- I don’t know what estate planning is, or where to start. This reason has a lot of merit. Most people that we talk to know they should have some sort of estate plan, but they aren’t exactly sure what they need or how to start the process. If this is you, rest assured, we can make it super easy for you. Your first step is to schedule a free 15 minute consultation to learn exactly how easy it is to get started. Or, you can check out one of our free monthly webinars or other events (here).
If you have been putting off your estate plan for any of these reasons, or if you have a reason that isn’t addressed here (we’d love to hear it, by the way), we encourage you to schedule a call to ask questions, and learn more about the Willow Legal Group process and why you shouldn’t keep putting it off. Your family will thank you for it. You can schedule a 15 minute call to learn more.
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