Planning During Peak Earning Years – Why You Shouldn’t Wait
Most adults reach their peak earning years between the ages of forty and fifty-five years old. At this stage of life, many people have children going to college, getting married, and having children of their own. Unfortunately, this is the time that many people experience health issues. During this age, a small percentage of friends or family may have died too early.
If you haven’t already done so, creating an estate plan during your peak earning years will ensure that you control what happens to you and your assets in order to stay out of court and from conflict.
Estate Planning During Peak Earning Years Is Important
Without an estate plan in place, you could leave yourself or your loved ones unprotected. If you don’t have a living will and become incapacitated, you may undergo treatments that you do not want. If you do not have a medical power of attorney in place, your significant other may not be able to make important medical decisions for you.
If you don’t have a financial power of attorney in place, your spouse will not be able to access your assets that are in your name alone or that require two signatures. Your spouse will be forced to go to court to be appointed as your conservator, a process that often costs more than a complete estate plan.
Your spouse or significant other could be disinherited in whole or in part if you pass away without a will.
If you only have a will in place, the probate court will most likely distribute your assets, which will be a costly, public and time-consuming process.
You could leave your family in conflict with each other over your estate.
Make Your Choices
If you become incapacitated, you will want to have already planned what medical treatments you want to be administered. It’s always best to think about what you would want ahead of time before those decisions are taken out of your hands.
A thoughtful and tailored estate plan can express your future wishes regarding medical treatment, such as:
Deciding whether you want to remain on life-support;
Whether you want to be resuscitated; or
Whether you want to receive intravenous fluids and tube feeding if you are unable to eat or drink on your own.
You can control your medical and financial decisions by including the power of attorney documents as part of your estate plan.
Asset Protection
At Colorado Wills and Estates, we will ensure that your assets are distributed according to your wishes. We will present strategies that can protect your assets from creditors and reduce or eliminate your estate taxes.
We will also discuss how you would like your assets to be used by your beneficiaries and can prevent them from squandering any inheritance in the future. If you want to create a legacy that could benefit several generations of your heirs, we can discuss how that is accomplished.
Your Family’s Future
You have worked so hard to create a legacy to leave for your loved ones. You want to ensure that your legacy is passed on according to your wishes. Your peak earning years are the perfect time to create a tailored estate plan so that you protect your loved ones from the court and from conflict.