Modern Families Need Help Planning Estates
With more than half of all marriages ending in divorce, and many of those people getting married a second, or even third time, there are many blended families which can make for complicated estate planning. How does a person leave money for his current spouse and his step children, while still providing for his biological children and not offend any one of them in the process?
Creating a Trust to Honor All the People in Your Life
Creating a trust to care for a spouse during her lifetime while preserving the principal for children may be on answer. Creative will and trust drafting can help the testator leave his estate in flexible and specific ways that honor and care for all of the people in his life.
Talk to Your Family Members about your Estate Plan
Once you talk to an experienced estate planning attorney, you can come up with a strategy to honor everyone in your life. It is important to talk to your loved ones about your decisions. It may be especially important to talk to your biological children if there is any chance they would misinterpret or might be hurt by your gifts to a later spouse or to step children. When family members are given a chance to ask you questions about your decisions, and discuss them openly with you, you minimize any possible feelings of alienation once you are gone.
Get Legal Help
Experienced Estate Planning Attorney Elga Goodman can help you create a flexible estate plan that fits the special needs of your family. Contact us today at 973-841-5111.
Posted in: Estate Planning, New York Estate Planning