{"id":973,"date":"2017-12-07T19:43:10","date_gmt":"2017-12-07T19:43:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/arizona-estate-planning\/?page_id=973"},"modified":"2022-06-14T19:32:05","modified_gmt":"2022-06-14T19:32:05","slug":"mistakes-to-avoid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/arizona-estate-planning\/blog\/mistakes-to-avoid\/","title":{"rendered":"Estate Planning Mistakes To Avoid"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Following are 13 common estate planning mistakes to avoid. Use this list to catch errors that could result in not properly transferring assets, nullifying parts of your plan, or worse, invalidating your estate planning documents altogether.<\/p>\n

Not Informing Family Members of Your Healthcare Preferences<\/h2>\n

Estate planning encompasses more than what happens when you die. If you ever become incapacitated and are unable to communicate important healthcare decisions, your doctors and your family need to know what treatments you\u2019re okay with. To prepare for this, draft a living will (also called an advance healthcare directive<\/a>) that doctors can reference. You can broadly authorize any and all treatments to save and extend your life, or you can specify certain treatments that you do not approve.<\/p>\n

Not Appointing a Power of Attorney<\/h2>\n

Similarly, if you become incapacitated you\u2019ll need someone to handle your affairs on your behalf. Providing someone with a durable power of attorney<\/a> authorizes them to access your financial accounts, pay your bills, and make important decisions while you\u2019re unable to care for yourself. You can also grant a healthcare power of attorney if you\u2019d like to provide someone with access to your medical records, and the ability to make important medical decisions for you.<\/p>\n

Not Informing Your Family Members of Your Funeral and Burial Plans<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s not uncommon for a family to open a will after the funeral. In these cases, your loved ones won\u2019t know about your intended funeral and burial plans until it\u2019s too late. Speak with your family about your plans, and if possible, write them in an official letter of instruction and deliver the letter to your executor.<\/p>\n

Not Having a Will<\/h2>\n

The greatest mistake of all is to not have a will<\/a>. Simply put, everyone over the age of 18 needs a will. Dying without one is called dying \u201cintestate<\/a>,\u201d and your assets will be distributed to your heirs according to your state\u2019s intestacy laws. Your heirs would have no say over who gets what\u2014that would be determined by a probate judge. Even if all of your assets are held in a living trust, it\u2019s smart to at least have a pour-over will to catch any assets you may have missed.<\/p>\n

Not Including Identifying Information for Your Beneficiaries<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s not enough to list someone\u2019s first and last name in your estate planning documents. For each person you mention, include their full name (including middle name) and their date of birth. It\u2019s smart to include addresses, so your attorney and your executor know how to contact them when your will is opened.<\/p>\n

Not Naming a Secondary Guardian, Backup Executor, or Contingent Beneficiaries<\/h2>\n

What will happen if individuals named in your will pass away before you? What if they decline your request to handle the responsibilities assigned in your will? Even if these events seem unlikely, it\u2019s always best to plan for the unexpected. You should name a secondary guardian<\/a> to care for your children, a backup executor (aka personal representative<\/a>) to handle your estate\u2019s affairs, and contingent beneficiaries<\/a> to receive your assets if one or more of your primary beneficiaries die.<\/p>\n

Failing to Include a TOD or POD Beneficiary on Your Bank and Brokerage Accounts<\/h2>\n

Too many assets pass unnecessarily through probate. The probate process comes with increased legal fees and prolongs the time it takes to transfer assets to your beneficiaries, so it\u2019s best to be avoided. Work with your financial institutions to include a transfer-on-death (TOD) or a payable-on-death (POD) beneficiary on your bank and brokerage accounts. While you\u2019re doing that, make sure your retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and other non-probate assets have the correct beneficiaries listed on the account.<\/p>\n

Forgetting to Account for Digital Assets<\/h2>\n

Digital assets are increasingly becoming a major part of modern estates. Even if you don\u2019t have virtual currencies, copyrighted content, or revenue-generating websites, you will likely have sentimentally-valuable items such as family photos and videos. To access your computer, smartphone, external hard drives, and data in the cloud, your surviving family members will need to know your account credentials. The best way to resolve this is to appoint a digital executor (which can be the same person as your estate\u2019s executor) and provide them with a list of your digital assets, along with username and password information. Many people choose to save this information using password management apps, but you can put it all on paper if you choose\u2014just be sure to store the document in a safe place in order to protect your identity, and regularly update the information.<\/p>\n

Improperly Signing and Dating Your Will<\/h2>\n

This is a simple mistake that can have drastic consequences. Print a copy of your will (don\u2019t write it by hand), include the date along with a statement that this is your last will and testament, and sign<\/a> it in the presence of a notary public. Some states do not require notarization, but it\u2019s a simple step to ensure your will isn\u2019t invalidated by a probate judge if someone contests the signature.<\/p>\n

Using Interested Witnesses<\/h2>\n

An interested witness<\/a> is someone who is a beneficiary to your estate. The state of Arizona is one of the few states that allow using interested witnesses, but it\u2019s best to avoid the practice if possible. In other states, having interested witnesses sign your will could result in losing their inheritance, or it could invalidate the will altogether. You will need 2 \u2013 3 witnesses to sign the will, and you may need to have their signatures notarized.<\/p>\n

Not Having a Strategy to Minimize Estate Taxes<\/h2>\n

Individual estates worth more than $5.49 million and joint estates worth more than $11 million will be subject to estate taxes, which can be as high as 40%. If you have a large estate, this can seriously erode the value that you can transfer to your heirs. Wealthy estates need a plan to move assets out of your estate and lower the final inheritence subject to the tax. Remember, tax evasion is illegal, but tax avoidance is prudent.<\/p>\n

Improperly Organizing a Revocable Living Trust<\/h2>\n

If you have a revocable living trust where you are the trustee<\/a> and the beneficiary, you\u2019ll need to appoint a successor trustee who can manage the trust when you die. You\u2019ll also need to assign contingent beneficiaries to receive your assets.<\/p>\n

Not Transferring Assets to Your Trusts<\/h2>\n

If you establish a trust, don\u2019t forget to transfer the appropriate assets to the newly formed trust. Transferring ownership can be a confusing process, so ask your attorney if they have a special secretary or team to guide you through the process. Mentioning the assets in your trust agreement isn\u2019t enough\u2014if you forget to transfer assets, they will be subject to probate.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Call Arizona Estate Attorney Dave Weed at (480)467-4325<\/a> to discuss your case today.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Following are 13 common estate planning mistakes to avoid. Use this list to catch errors that could result in not properly transferring assets, nullifying parts of your plan, or worse, invalidating your estate planning documents altogether. Not Informing Family Members of Your Healthcare Preferences Estate planning encompasses more than what happens when you die. If […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEstate Planning Mistakes To Avoid - 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