Starting a conversation with aging parents about estate planning is a difficult but necessary task. No one likes to think about their own passing, but the longer these discussions are put off, the harder they become. This is becoming even more important since fewer and fewer seniors report having an estate plan.
A lengthy study by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimated that a dementia-free male aged 65 had a 14.3 percent probability of developing dementia at some point in his life. For 65-year-old dementia-free females, the comparable percentage was 21.7.
Probate is the legal process for settling the estates of those who die. Probate can be a confusing concept for those embarking on estate planning and certainly for those who’ve lost a loved one and now must face the prospect of nine months or more of court proceedings before their loved one’s assets can be distributed to heirs.
According to an annual survey conducted by the website Caring.com, in 2021, awareness of the need for estate planning grew among the 18-to-34 age group due to the pandemic and its health scare.
Approximately 50,000 estates are filed each year in the Probate Division of Ohio’s Courts of Common Pleas. The substance of the estates, decedents, and heirs vary widely. However, they all share the need for an executor to administer them.
Despite the continued awareness around planning for life's uncertainties, a lot of people have yet to understand what an estate plan entails and how to make one. According to a 2021 Wills and Estate Planning Study by Caring.com, about 34.2% of American adults who don't have a will (69.1%) "don't know how to get one."
Getting hurt, becoming disabled, or getting older and less cognizant are real-life possibilities we should all plan for before it’s too late. By taking the time to set up a well-rounded estate plan now, you could save your loved ones a lot of future conflicts — not to mention ensuring that your wishes are respected if worse comes to worst.
In November 2020, the firm gave an online presentation about the basics of estate planning. We thought it would be helpful to post this excerpt, where we talk about what an estate is and why you need to plan for it, for those who didn't get to attend but curious about whether estate planning is right for them.
On the one hand, you may realize, perhaps more acutely than ever, the importance of having your estate plan in order. On the other hand, however, you may be apprehensive about leaving your home for fear of contracting COVID-19. To help resolve this conflict, here's information to help you draft your own basic estate plan while you shelter in place.
What started out as half-a-world away is now in our backyard. As we take steps to prevent contracting coronavirus, many of us hope to do so without severely disrupting our lives. But what if disruption for some of us is inevitable. Is there anything that we can do to mitigate that risk? Well, from an estate planning perspective—yes, there is.
