Reflecting on Our Recent Event, “Planning a Smooth Estate Transition”
One of our passions at Kings Path Partners is hosting educational events featuring panels of topical experts on investing, estates, taxes, and philanthropy. COVID put a bit of a damper on these the last few years, but we were able to host a great event in the fall on private investments, and last week we had another great discussion around estate transitions.
Our most recent session on February 8th, “Planning a Smooth Estate Transition”, focused on how one can prepare and organize their estate transition to be a blessing to their heirs. We were joined by four local estate attorneys who each shared some of the failures, successes, and strategies they have experienced in their careers. We enjoyed an interactive discussion with guests, creating a great opportunity to understand the complexities and importance of a well-planned estate.
Why this topic? Years ago, a 95-year-old woman named Margie Jenkins wrote a book called “You Only Die Once.” In the book, she describes a woman who has passed and is looking down on her three children around the dinner table. Instead of grieving her or celebrating her memory, they were arguing about her wishes – what dress would she want to be buried in? what casket did she want? They were taking this moment of grief and turning it into conflict over relatively unimportant things.
Each of us has an opportunity to make our estates a blessing to our heirs and not a curse. We designed this event with this in mind. Here are some of the key takeaways from the event.
Key Takeaways
Dying intestate, or without a will, creates a complicated mess for your heirs. Everyone should have a will! These don’t have to be complicated or costly either.
You should be very selective about who you choose as executor or trustee. These roles can take a lot of time, focus, energy, and knowledge. Few people have this expertise. Name someone who is willing to seek good help.
Be considerate of your heirs’ time, relationships, and emotional capacity. (Heirs may fight, or may not have time to be your personal representative. Give them the option to opt-out gracefully.
Time is not your friend when it comes to estate planning. Delayed execution, health, memory decline, or unexpected death can leave plans unfinished. Get it done today! Most documents can be amended if things need to change in the future.
Think about the softer issues too and write these down. What do you want your burial to be like? What values or stories do you want to leave behind?
Get your house in order! We provided a book to attendees: Get It Together: Organize Your Records So Your Family Won’t Have To. This is a great tool for making sure you leave everything behind in a well-organized and accessible form.
If you weren’t able to make it to this event and want to learn more, contact us today to start a conversation. We hope to see you at a future event!
