For most people in New Jersey who are interested in getting their estate plan together, the main goals are to protect their assets and make things as easy as possible for their family members, heirs and beneficiaries.
However, in order to accomplish those goals, many of our readers must sort through the myths about the world of estate planning.
Busting the myths
A recent news article attempted to breakdown the five most common myths when it comes to estate planning.
The first one was this: that a will is the only thing you need in order to complete your estate plan. Yes, there will be situations in which a simple will is all that is needed. But, most likely, those situations are rare. Most people will need other documents to be included in a comprehensive estate plan, such as a living will, power of attorney documents and possibly even a trust.
Another common myth is the misunderstanding that estate planning is only something to worry about when you get older. The fact is that almost anyone can benefit from having an estate plan in place, but particularly younger families that include minor children. Parents should have plans in place for the care of their children if something should happen to the parents.
Some of the other myths mentioned in the article include: that estate planning is only a concern for wealthy individuals; that the distribution of assets is the only point of an estate plan; and that estate planning is a “one and done” process. In fact: estate planning can benefit people of all ranges of wealth; there are usually other goals to accomplish via an estate plan besides the distribution of assets; and estate plans will need to be continually evaluated for potential updates in the years after the plans are completed.