When people think about estate planning, they normally think about possessions and money. They think that estate planning is all about deciding who gets what possessions and who will inherit their money.
For some people, this is not something that they care about too much. They think it is of no importance to them what happens to their money. After all, they will not be around to spend it or to see who does, so why bother with it too much?
Estate planning, however, is about much more than that, as NJ Biz recently discussed in “Why haven’t you protected your greatest asset?”
The most important thing you have is your family, especially if you have minor children. Estate planning is about protecting them.
Yes, most of the focus is on possessions and money. However, the point of estate planning is to decide the best way to leave your possessions and money to your family.
It is about making sure that your family is cared for after you pass away.
When you plan your estate, you can make sure that your assets can be used by your family to meet its needs.
If you have minor children, then estate planning is also about making sure that a responsible person takes care of them and handles the assets for the children, until they are old enough to do so for themselves.
You need to plan for your family. Think about them as the reason for estate planning, instead of just thinking about it as a way to deal
with your possessions and money.
Reference: NJ Biz (Oct. 9, 2017) “Why haven’t you protected your greatest asset?”