Myth Busting: Only the Ultra Rich Need Estate Planning

Everyone needs estate planning. We ask, “How do you want to be remembered?” You do not want the last thing your family, heirs, or charities to remember is the mess you left, the arguments, the delays, the expense, and the taxes. You owe it to them to plan and to keep the plan fresh. Then, you will be remembered. Positively.

When we hear about estate planning on the news or read about it on the internet, it is usually in regards to a wealthy person or celebrity who made some error, did no planning, or has family members who are angry about the planning that was actually done. The topic is attention grabbing: Wealthy people have so much that they are the ones who need planning and also can afford it! By comparison, when the average person thinks about their own property and planning, they assume it’s not necessary because they don’t have anything close to Jeff Bezos’ billions.

However, estate planning is about more than just the money. While proper planning allows you to determine who gets your money and property upon your death, the planning process also addresses what happens if you become incapacitated and someone has to make decisions on your behalf – which is a far more likely scenario. If you have not done any planning, the court will appoint someone to make your medical and financial decisions for you. This can be very time consuming, expensive, and public. It can also wreak havoc on a family if they disagree about who should be appointed and how decisions should be made.

Even for those of modest estates, who gets your savings when you die is an important consideration. Without any planning, state law will decide who gets what. Many times, what the government’s best guess as to what you would want is not in line with what you actually want. But, because you did not take the opportunity to formalize your wishes in an estate plan, the state has to step in and do it for you.

We all want to leave positive legacies. A little planning now can serve your heirs for years to come. Here are some recent examples of what can happen when someone dies either without an estate plan or one that was left neglected.