The point of estate planning is to ensure that after you die, your assets are distributed according to your wishes and as smoothly as possible. You may think that establishing and funding a trust and composing a will is all you have to do. Completing those tasks is definitely the core of your estate planning, but if you want to ensure that everything goes as you planned, you need some additional preparation. For example, you should choose your executor wisely and then brief them for what they should expect in terms of responsibilities and relatives’ expected reactions. There are also some practical things to go over. Here’s what your reputable trust attorney San Diego suggests.

Inform everyone involved

Avoid surprises by presenting your estate plans to your executor and family members who will be affected. If you do it this way, you have a chance to explain your actions and possibly discourage someone from contesting the will. Another reason why an advance talk is good is because you can find out whether the executor wants the task and whether he or she knows what to expect.  However, it is my recommendation that you do not give actual copies of the estate planning documents to your executor and/or family members. Should you change your mind in the future regarding your executor choices or beneficiaries, you do not want conflicting copies of an estate plan floating around.

Designate beneficiaries

Update the beneficiaries listed in your will, trust, your retirement accounts, and any other payable-on-death accounts. If you are keen on avoiding probate and you set up a trust, it’s essential that you make sure all assets are transferred into the trust. This is called funding the trust.

Tell you executor where your important documents are

You may feel that you are an organized person, but your executor may have a hard time locating all the papers necessary to dispose of your estate. It’s a good idea to put all the documents you can collect into a folder and tell your executor where the folder is. Here is a list of documents you could put together:

• Bank statements
• Birth and marriage certificates
• Brokerage statements
• Insurance policies
• Deeds to real estate
• Divorce decree
• Military discharge
• Property tax records
• Social security records
• Vehicle titles
• Trust document
• Will
• Copies of current bills
• List of usernames and passwords for online banking and social media
• Important contacts

Put your executor in touch with professional advisors

If you have a professional who you regularly get advice from, you should introduce your executor to them. It would be good if you could arrange a meeting. If your executor ever has any questions and needs professional guidance, it would be best if they could get it from someone who knew you. At the very least, include the names and contact details of these professionals in the folder we mentioned above. These professionals may be employees of your:

• Bank
• Brokerage company
• Insurance companies (for life, home and auto policies)

Arrange who gets possessions with emotional value

When a family member dies, the surviving relatives may find themselves in an emotionally difficult situation. Fights can break out over little and big issues alike. It would be good to decide who gets objects of emotional value. There are three ways of going about this this.

First, you can outline in your will who get things like vacation souvenirs, antique objets d’art, artwork, etc. You can also draw up a non-binding instructional letter to the family to be attached to your will. Finally, you can gift these objects during your lifetime, which may give you some pleasure.

Determine whether the executor will get compensation

Executors can be paid or unpaid. Both options have their advantages. However, you may feel that you want to give some financial compensation to the executor even if they refuse such a thing. That is the typical situation with friends and family members. They may refuse payment because: 1) they feel it’s their family duty, 2) it’s in their interest that the estate doesn’t get chipped further away by their payment or 3) they may be reluctant to cause resentment from other family members, which is especially likely among siblings.

This is what you can do if you want to reward the executor and avoid the situation in which they must claim the money. You can:

• Leave them a slightly higher portion of the estate
• Open a separate bank account and leave the money there

Want some more answers from a reputable trust attorney San Diego?

The Law Offices of Irina Sherbak are here for you when you have questions regarding estate planning, living trusts, wills and power of attorney for finances and healthcare. We are here to serve you with integrity, professionalism and dedication. Feel free to call today to schedule your free, no-obligation 30-minute consultation!