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The two most important blunders in estate planning are [1] not making an estate plan at all and [2] not using an experienced, knowledgeable estate planning lawyer to accomplish your goals.
The downside of not planning at all is ignoring the reality that protecting your family for unforeseen circumstances is unwise, but let’s look at why estate planning should also not be a do-it-yourself project. If you compare estate planning to other services requiring specialized knowledge, training, and skill — e.g. electrical wiring, plumbing, brain surgery — you will realize that they all demand experience and expertise that most lay people do not possess. Using an experienced estate planning attorney is the first step to take to avoid making costly blunders.
Neglecting to Protect Assets
The Law Offices of Patricia Bloom-McDonald possesses the knowledge to avoid the following issues:
- Excessive Taxation
- Scams
- Long-term medical costs
Attorney Bloom-McDonald is experienced at creating irrevocable trusts to protect resources for not only a special needs child but for anyone requiring long-term care utilizing government benefits. She is also ready to create Revocable Trusts and or business structures, such as limited liability companies, that may offer protection of your personal assets if your business is sued, and other trusts that have the advantage of removing your assets from your ownership.
Neglecting to Update Your Estate Plan When Life Changes Occur
Major life events, like the following, make it crucial that you make changes to your estate plan in terms of naming new beneficiaries, not only in your Last Will and Testament, but on your insurance policies, bank accounts, and retirement accounts, or perhaps naming a new Personal Representative:
- Birth
- Adoption
- Marriage
- Divorce
- Remarriage
- Death
- Change in family dynamics
- Relocation to another state
- Major illness, injury or incapacity
Attorney Patricia Bloom-McDonald pledges to assist you whenever your estate plan needs to be amended due to a life-changing event taking place.
Entrusting Assets to a Beneficiary Who Is Unable to Manage Money
It would be a serious mistake to gift a large inheritance to a minor child, grandchild, or someone you love who has an ongoing issue with money and who cannot handle funds, without setting up a protective trust naming a responsible trustee.
Attorney Patricia Bloom-McDonald can also guide you through the process of creating a spendthrift trust to provide a loved one who is addicted to alcohol, drugs, or gambling with resources to protect those inherited assets from being misspent.
Neglecting to Prepare for possible Incapacity or Long-Term Care
It is hard to think of our own mortality, but it may be even harder to consider the possibility of becoming incapacitated physically or mentally. Unfortunately, statistics show that most Americans over the age of 65 will require long-term care at some point.
Because of the exorbitant cost of long-term care, very few people will be able to afford years of nursing home care or private in-home nursing care without MassHealth/Medicaid assistance.
Attorney Patricia Bloom-McDonald is particularly well-prepared to help you protect your assets so that you can retain eligibility for government assistance should it become necessary.
Contact Attorney Patricia Bloom-McDonald Today!
The best way to avoid estate planning mistakes in Southeastern Massachusetts is to work with Attorney Patricia Bloom-McDonald. She has been in this line of work for over thirty years and is well-aware of the consequences of improper wording, oversights, and failures to make necessary changes.
Contact Attorney Patricia Bloom-McDonald vows to make certain your estate plan does what it is supposed to do — protect your assets and your loved ones from whatever unforeseen challenges may lie ahead.