3 Ways Estate Planning Will Help You Save Money

If you develop a proper estate plan, you can protect the assets that comprise your estate. This means that they will go to the people you want to give them to, all while retaining their value.

Going over three ways estate planning will help you save money, and speaking with an estate planning lawyer, will make it easier for you to develop a proper estate plan that satisfies your wishes.

01: Estate Planning Helps You Bypass Probate 

Right before many of your assets can go to your chosen beneficiaries, they must pass through something called the “probate process.”

The probate process is a process that allows your assets to be assessed/validated and then distributed according to your wishes. This process also allows debts to be paid, prior to these assets being distributed to your beneficiaries.

If your assets go through the probate process, then your beneficiaries are unlikely to receive what you wish to give them in less than six to twelve months.

On top of that, the probate process is very expensive. This is because there are a wide variety of probate fees that must be taken from your estate.

If you develop a proper estate plan, you can bypass the probate process. Your beneficiaries will get the assets you wish to give them much more quickly, and your estate won’t be drained by probate fees. 

02: Estate Planning Can Reduce The Taxes You Owe 

Many different estate planning tools can be used to reduce the taxes you owe. These include gifting strategies and setting up/funding a particular type of account.

If you develop an estate plan that is set up to reduce the taxes you owe, your beneficiaries will owe less taxes than they might be expected to. 

03: Estate Planning Helps Prevent Family Conflict 

A variety of family conflicts can, and do, arise over the wishes outlined in an estate plan. And, if a particular family member wishes to do so, they can contest the wishes you have clarified within your will/estate plan.

Just as an example, if you give your house to your daughter, and a car to your son, your son could contest the will by claiming that you outlined this wish while impaired.

If your son contests the will in court, then your beneficiaries may have a more difficult time getting the assets you want to give them. And, your son could be out a fair bit of money, due to attorney’s fees.

You can develop a proper estate plan that helps prevent family conflict. By doing so, you can clarify your wishes beforehand, while also outlining conditions that prohibit challenges to the estate plan.

Regarding the last point, you can outline a condition in which anyone who contests your will in court forfeits their inheritance, thereby preventing these kinds of challenges. This is just one example, though. 

Speak With A Florida Estate Planning Lawyer Today 

If you would like to develop an estate plan that satisfies your wishes, one of the best things you can do is speak with an estate planning lawyer at the Millhorn Elder Law Planning Group who has the skills to help you. 

Sources: 

law.cornell.edu/wex/probate

law.cornell.edu/wex/will