Many New Jersey residents think that, when it comes to their estates, they do not need to put plans in place until they are older. Estate planning is not just for the older population, however. In fact, for individuals with young children at home, they are doing their families a disservice by not being prepared for the inevitable.
Everyone dies. Some people become incapacitated well before that happens. If either of these things occurs when a person has young children still living at home, who will take care of the kids? Who will manage assets until children are old enough to make financial decisions for themselves?
Parents who fail to put together estate plans risk having a court decide who will be the guardians of their children and who will be in control of their assets. Most parents would rather make these decisions for themselves so that they know that, if anything happened to them, their children and property would be in good hands. The only way to make sure one’s children end up with the right person is to set up a legal guardianship that will not take effect until it is needed. As far as property goes, there are a number of ways to ensure it is used to benefit one’s children and makes it into the children’s hands when they are old enough.
New Jersey residents who are not sure where to start when it comes to estate planning can seek assistance with putting a plan together. With the right assistance, one can be sure that all the necessary protections are in place in the event of one’s incapacitation or death. Further assistance can be offered when adjustments to estate plans are needed — which may be every few years.