How Your Family Situation Affects Your Plans for Your Legacy
By Barry Zimmer on December 7th, 2017 in Estate Planning for Young Children, Estate Planninng, Estate Taxes
The attorneys at the Cincinnati office of Zimmer Law Firm will help you to determine if a trust should be a part of your legacy plan. There are many different issues that can affect the legal tools that you need to use to make a legacy plan. At Zimmer Law Firm, we work closely with you to identify the factors that impact your legacy planning so you can make the right plans to protect your assets, provide for your loved ones, and leave the legacy that you had been hoping to leave.
Many of the key issues that matter when it comes to making a legacy plan center around your specific family relationships and the needs of your heirs or beneficiaries. Zimmer Law Firm can help you to understand how your unique family circumstances affect the process of legacy planning so you should give us a call. You can also read on to better understand some of the key ways that your family structure can affect the legacy plan that you decide to make.
Your Marital Status Impacts Your Legacy Plan
If you are married, you can leave assets to your spouse without having to worry about estate tax . However, if you are unmarried or if you wish to leave assets to anyone other than your spouse, your estate could end up being taxed if you have substantial assets to pass on. This is a major concern for business owners and owners of farmland who may have estates that are valuable on paper because of the land or the company assets but who may not have enough liquid assets to pay the tax. However, anyone whose estate could be hit with a big tax bills could be aware of the potential lost assets and should consider working with an experienced attorney to reduce or avoid taxes.
The Age of Your Heirs or Beneficiaries Affects Your Legacy Plan
If your heirs or beneficiaries are young, they cannot directly inherit. A person under 18 will not be able to manage money and unless you use the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act or use a trust to determine how the assets will be managed and who will be in charge of the assets, the court may need to appoint a guardian if you leave wealth to someone who is underage. There are tools that you can use to avoid this problem and to have much more control over when and how children, grandchildren or other young people in your life inherit. You should work with an attorney to find out what your options are for making use of those tools.
The Special Needs of Your Heirs or Beneficiaries can Impact Your Legacy Plan
If you have heirs or beneficiaries who are disabled and who cannot manage money, you will again need to use appropriate legal tools to ensure that the right person is put in charge of managing an inheritance that you provide. It can be especially important to make a plan to provide for disabled loved ones because there is also another concern besides the possibility that your relative will not be able to manage inherited funds. There is also the risk that an inheritance you provide could cause a loss of access to means-tested benefits like Medicaid. You do not want to cause someone you love who has a disability to lose access to important benefits upon which that individual is relying so you should use tools like a special needs trust to structure the inheritance you leave behind.
Getting Help from Cincinnati Trust Attorneys
These are just a few of the key ways that your personal family situation can affect the steps that you need to take to provide for your loved ones and leave the legacy that you hoped to. You want to make sure your family is cared for in the most appropriate way possible and that your assets are managed in the best way possible so the wealth you have worked hard to acquire is used for your intended aims. Zimmer Law Firm helps you to make use of the right legal tools to facilitate the process of keeping your family and assets safe and secure after you are gone.
To find out more about the services that Zimmer Law Firm can provide, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at 513.721.1513 to get personalized help.