Death is an inevitable entity of life. It’s unavoidable, often times unpredictable and unfortunately, many times unexpected. It’s hard enough for loved ones when death has an absolute date; allowing for preparations, arrangements and closure with little or no additional stress.
However, loved ones often have major conflicts, breakdowns, disagreements and extreme separation when death is unexpected and the deceased has not taken the time to put their departure in order. Have you taken the time to prepare a will? If yes, guaranteeing that your loved ones get the inheritance you meant for them requires more than a will.
Conditions in a will are outmoded by the beneficiaries listed on financial assets such as IRAs, life insurance policies, and bank accounts. It is important that you do an annual review of your assets versus beneficiaries listed. If you were married and your spouse is deceased or ill or you have divorced, make sure that that person isn’t on any of your policies or accounts as the beneficiary. It sounds like something a person would automatically do, but often life gets in the way and people forget. You may have dated someone for a while and broken up, maybe you co-signed items, shared accounts or made investments together; clean that up as well.
Create a living revocable trust which is an arrangement you make for management and distribution of your property. Like a will, the trust is “revocable,” meaning that you can modify or eliminate it at any time. Furthermore, make that trust the beneficiary of all of your sizable assets.
This ensures a smooth transition. While you are alive, your assets remain completely in your control. Absolutely, NEVER make a child the beneficiary of your life insurance policy, if you die, the insurer will force your relatives into court to get someone appointed as a guardian of the estate which is separate from any guardian you may have specified in your will to care for your child or children. It can tie the money up and make it extremely difficult to withdraw funds without going to court each and every time. By making your designated trust the beneficiary, insurers will effortlessly transfer the money to the trust and the distribution of assets will be handled exactly as you specified.
More often than not, your relatives have no idea what you truly have, own, investments, how many accounts you possess, your secret stashes or what people in your life need to be contacted in the event of your death, let alone their phone numbers. Empower one to two people that you truly trust by assigning them as the only people who can go inside your safe deposit box. If you don’t have one, for your important papers, get one. All of your deeds, titles, policies, bonds, account numbers, secret stash locations, contracts, as well as, important people’s phone number list, should be there. Furthermore, usernames and passwords should also be included. No one should have to sift through your home trying to pull pieces of “your life’s puzzle” together, in an effort to close your life’s accounts while making preparations simultaneously. Do your own homework while you’re still here.
If you think you have nothing worthy of a will, start asking family members what they would want of yours if you died tomorrow and make a list. You will be very surprised. The division of belongings can create chaos in families.
Angela Ardis is the author of “Inside a Thug’s Heart,” “My Mind’s Poetry” and the upcoming “The Block.” To contact Angela Ardis visit www.AngelaArdis.com or send emails to: info@AngelaArdis.com
