Daniel A. Crowder
Daniel A. Crowder

1055 Patrick place
Brownsburg, IN 46112

 

Estate Planning, Wills and Living Trusts

For the majority of individuals, planning for the impact of estate taxes is a small to non-existent portion of the reasons they should be thinking about what will happen to their family and their estate after they have passed away.  Far more important reasons to plan ahead for your family and your estate include:

  • Making sure that the persons (or charities) that you choose (and not the persons the State of Indiana will otherwise choose for your) receive the benefits of your lifetime of working and investing.
  • Providing that young children will have the guardians of your choice, and not the choice of the county probate judge, if you should die before your children are raised.
  • Exercising your ability to appoint persons or institutions you trust to serve as trustees to invest your estate assets for the benefit of your young children or your special-needs children, and to use their discretion in expending those assets for the benefit of those children, if you should die before your children are mature enough or able to handle your assets on their own.
  • Insuring that all your final debts, taxes and expenses which are due to your legitimate creditors will be paid, and that creditors who are not legitimate cannot force your family to make payments to them.
  • In the proper circumstances, reducing or eliminating the involvement of the probate court system in the administration of your estate, by the use of either an unsupervised estate administration or a revocable living trust.

This planning is made effective by drafting a Last Will and Testament, and in some cases, a Revocable Living Trust Agreement.  This worksheet is a listing of the basic information needed to prepare a simple Last Will and Testament, including provisions for guardians and trustees for young children.