Poor Planning Can Lead to Problems for your Family

Michigan residents who fail to engage in comprehensive estate planning leave behind a stressful and expensive situation that can cause serious conflicts upon family members. While no one wants particularly wants to think about death and dying, it is better to address these subjects head on rather than avoid them until it is too late. There are a number of significant problems that can arise for your surviving family members when you do not properly plan for medical decisions, funeral expenses, and the disposition of your assets following your death.

First, if you have surviving family members who depend on you for financial support, they may continue to need at least some of that financial support following your death. If you don’t properly plan for their needs, they could end up waiting a significant amount of time until they can access any assets from your estate. If your estate must go through the probate process, it can be a long and expensive wait for your family members to see any income or assets from your estate.

Next, there are presumably family members whom you would prefer to make medical decisions for you in the event of your incapacity, or whom you would prefer to handle the financial and legal matters related to your assets following your death. Inevitably, there are family members whom you would never choose to make those kinds of important decisions. If you don’t specifically designate someone to handle those decisions and related matters for you, then you risk not only having the wrong person making decisions for you, but also family members being in conflict over who has the right to make those decisions for you. If you want to choose the person to make medical decisions for you or handle your financial affairs after death, then you need to make that decision now.

Furthermore, without careful estate planning, you could end up with much of the value of your estate going to pay for the costs of probate court proceedings, taxes, and other expenses that you didn’t anticipate and avoid. There are a number of different estate planning tools that you can use to avoid probate, conserve your assets, and save your family time and money. You also can remove the stress of having to make sudden emergency medical decisions on your behalf by making your intentions clear and designating a person to make sure that your wishes are carried out. By taking the time to engage in some simple estate planning, you can avoid a great deal of conflict in the future.

Our Michigan estate planning attorneys can guide you through every step of creating a comprehensive estate plan for the future to protect yourself and your family. Let us answer your questions about any and all issues related to estate planning, as well as ensure that your current estate plan meets all of your needs. The attorneys at Legacy Law Center have advocated on behalf of many individuals and families throughout the estate planning process. Call our office today and schedule a time to talk with one of our experienced estate planning attorneys.