The Essentials of Estate Planning

When one thinks of an estate, they picture a large opulent property somewhere in the Hamptons or several owned yachts parked by a nearby lake. The fact is we all have an estate. Your savings account, your IRA, your clothes, your furniture - all of that is your estate. At the time of your death, all of that property has to go somewhere. Unless you don't perform some measure of estate planning, this property will go to places in which you may have been opposed to while still living. Estate planning, from a bird eye view is you deciding how you want your property handled, whom you want it to go to, and when they should receive it. It is noteworthy that the most careful form of estate planning will have you examine various court fees, taxes, and administrative expenses and essentially look to minimize all of these overhead costs. Many of us typically do not know what taxes are involved nor do we know what the bill will be at the end of the day after taking into account all of the court fees. The best decision you can make when looking into estate planning is to contact a New York Estate Planning Lawyer.
Proper estate planning has you consider the following items:

• Examining what fees you will be exposed to (Federal taxes and State taxes, court fees, legal fees). You will want to see how you can minimize your taxable exposure along with what the courts and lawyers would charge you.
• Business Planning. If you happen to own a company, you will want to consider who will be running it or rather who will inherit your share of the company.
• Look into life insurance policies in order to support your family or loved ones even after you are gone along with long term care insurance in the event you may be sick or injured for an extended period of time.
• Selecting an executor, guardian, or trustee ahead of time so the court system does not select these crucial roles for you.
• Provide instruction as to how you want the possibility of you suffering a life changing disability to be handled.
• Deciding upon who should receive your assets and property, how it should be distributed (lump sum or in portions), and when this property should be distributed.

This is simply an over view of what should be taken into account when looking into estate planning. NY Estate Law can get complicated. It is highly recommended you get in contact with the right professionals to assist you in your decision making. At times, relatives and friends can be subjective. A trusted professional in the estate planning industry could be the best decision you will ever make. Estate Planning Lawyers know how the probate process works, have been to Surrogate's court, and have drafted trusts and wills on behalf of their clients. Instead of taking matters into your own hands, open yourself up to the idea of dealing with a lawyer specialized in the field of estate law.