Prepare for your estate planning consultation by following these 6 steps
You should be congratulated if you finally set up an appointment to start your estate plan. Your estate plan is a gift you can give your family and yourself. You may be nervous about your appointment, especially if you haven’t met with an attorney before. Although every consultation is unique, an Indianapolis attorney at 
Frank & Kraft offers some steps to take to help you prepare for your estate planning consultation.Estate Planning Consultation: Things to Consider
One of the many reasons you should work with an experienced estate planning attorney when creating or updating your estate plan is that your finalized plan should be uniquely tailored to achieve your goals and to meet your needs. Your first estate planning consultation will focus on the things that matter to you and are relevant to your life. You can prepare yourself for your estate plan appointment by doing the following:
Decide your estate planning goals.
- While all estate plans will provide for the distribution after the death the creator of the plan, there are other goals you can achieve within your estate planning. It may be important to your estate that you avoid probate, or plan for a beneficiary with special needs. Take some time to decide what your goals are and prioritize those goals.Document your assets and debts.
- The better it is for everyone if you include more details in your estate planning. Make a detailed list with all your assets and liabilities to ensure that these details are included in the plan. Include account numbers, descriptions, locations and values. Decide who you want to provide for in your plan. While it may be tempting to leave assets to a number of people (or entities), you should start by deciding who you will provide for financially. These are usually people who are financially dependant on you, such as your children and spouse. Once you have covered the financial support of these people, you can then make gifts to those you wish to inherit your estate. Create a list of specific gifts.
- Specific gifts are those that are not included in a larger gift. You may want to give a painting to your favorite niece, but you might gift half of the estate to an adult son. Specific bequests can be family heirlooms, gifts with sentimental value or even a home or vehicle. Consider fiduciary responsibilities. Even a simple estate planning document has at least one fiduciary function. The Executor of your will acts as a Fiduciary when overseeing the probate process of your estate. Fiduciary roles also include Trustee, Agent, and Guardian. Write down any questions. It is easy to forget important details when you arrive at your appointment. With that in mind, start writing questions down as they occur to you so that you have a list when you arrive at your appointment.
- Are You Ready for Your Estate Planning Consultation?For more information, please join us for an upcoming FREE seminar. Contact an experienced Indianapolis estate planner at
- Frank & Kraft or call
- (317) 684-500 for an appointment. Read More!
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