Oregon Estate + Business Planning Blog

Do I need estate planning if I don't have an "estate"?

 

 

Should someone who doesn't have "an estate" really worry about estate planning?

The answer is YES.

I really want to dispel the myth that estate planning is about taking care of your stuff.

Estate planning is about taking care of yourself and your family, and yes, your stuff, if you die or are incapacitated and unable to make decisions for yourself.

You may feel like you don’t have an estate, but if you own any personal belongings, bank accounts, or retirement accounts, life insurance, you do own property that needs planning to address.

My mother died when I was 2 years old, and she didn’t have an estate so she didn’t do any planning. That left me in a precarious position, because she hadn’t named any guardians, and she didn’t have a plan created for the large settlement her estate was awarded due to the car accident she died in.

If you’re a parent, you’re planning for the worst-case scenario, and that’s basically dying in an accident while your kids are still young. So you need to name guardians and name someone who will be in charge of managing money you leave behind for your kids.

But also, you’ve got to make a plan for who is going to make decisions for you if you’re incapacitated. You’re about 4 times likelier to be incapacitated than you are to die early, and who will make healthcare, financial, and parenting decisions for you if that happens? If you don’t have a plan in place, your family will have to go to court to get someone appointed, and that person will have to report to the court for the rest of your life.

So the answer is yes, everyone over the age of 18 needs some estate planning.

If you’re a parent, go to my website right now and read my FREE REPORT, called The 9 Planning Mistakes Parents Make. Go to this link and look on the left column for that link.

If YOU have a legal question about estate or business planning that you’d like me to make a video about, you can message me on my Facebook page. It’s facebook.com/aistonlaw.

To your family's health & prosperity,

 

P.S.  Want to get started on the most important planning you'll ever do for your family and business?  Give our office a call at (503) 235-5150 or email [email protected] to get started.  You'll be glad you did.

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Candice N. Aiston is an Legal Planning Attorney for Estates + Businesses in the Portland, Oregon area. She helps people to prepare for a lifetime of security, prosperity, and guidance. If you would like to receive her free reports, please visit http://candiceaistonlaw.com/. Follow her Facebook page for daily planning tips: https://www.facebook.com/aistonlaw/.

[Update in Oregon Law] Multnomah County, Oregon Non-Professional Fiduciary Education Program

As of February 1, 2015, all non-professional guardians, conservators, trustees and personal representatives appointed by the Multnomah County Circuit Court must, within 15 days of their appointment date, register for a class that meets the curriculum requirements of the Multnomah County Non-Professional Fiduciary Education & Training Program, completing the class within 60 days of their appointment date. The cost of the course may be treated as a cost of administration of the proceeding. (SLR 9.076). 

Special Advocates for Vulnerable Oregonians (SAVO) offers classes that meet the criteria. There is a class for each role, and each class is one hour long and costs $100. Fiduciaries who cannot be at the class in person may take it remotely.

The purpose of this new requirement is to cut down on errors made by fiduciaries in court proceedings. Most fiduciaries that make errors do so unintentionally, but the errors still end up costing the protected person, beneficiaries, and fiduciaries financially and emotionally. Education can help fiduciaries to carry out their duties properly so that these situations are avoided.