Learn the Basics of Estate Planning

A Couple Learning About Estate Planning

Many young people assume that the need for an estate planning lawyer in Hernando County, FL, is only for the old and the rich. However, this isn’t the case. Estate planning can be addressed at any time and in any tax bracket. In fact, it is one of the only ways to ensure your voice and wishes are heard in the instance of an untimely illness, accident, or death.

So, what exactly is an estate? In the simplest terms, it is everything you own—your money and all of your assets, including your car and home—at your death. When you decide, in advance and in writing, who will get your money and assets, that is estate planning.

Your heirs are the people who will receive your assets and money after you are gone. The act of giving these things to your heirs is called asset distribution. It is also essential to understand that your debts are also part of your estate. That means anything you owe on credit cards and loans must be paid off first by your estate before any assets or money are distributed to your heirs.

Estate planning isn’t only about money. It is also about leaving instructions for how your incapacitation or death may be handled. For instance, if you do not want to be kept on a life-support system if you were in a coma, you would put that in your estate. Want a cremation instead of a burial? That should also be included in your estate planning.