Why Young Couples Should Care About Estate Planning
Why should young people and couples care about estate planning. When many people think about estate planning, they envision their parents, grandparents or others like these who have had long careers, accumulated a lot of material wealth, perhaps. Estate planning is about wealth accumulation, wealth protection and wealth distribution. But estate planning; at its core, is love memorialized. And what is more important to you than your children. The young may not have accumulated much wealth, at this point in their lives; but many young couples have children. Their children are why they should care about estate planning because negatives happen in life: (1) accidents happen that injures people at all ages; (2) marriages fail and relationships drift apart creating uncertainty for parents and their children; and (3) death occurs at all ages. These are some of the major life events that happens; mostly, unannounced and unexpectantly. Estate planning is risk planning. It is planning for these events; because, failure to plan is likely disastrous, costly, and draining on all involved. At this time, let us take a closer look at why young couples should care about estate planning:
Young Couples, Children, Texas Guardianships & Estate Law:
Why Young Couples Should Plan Before Their Children Are Born?
Life events often happen without announcement. That is why family planning should begin before the birth of children. Families should begin estate planning before the birth of their children. This planning ought to be a part of the engagement process in preparation of marriage, and certainly before the birth of children. Estate planning is not exclusively for the wealthy or the elderly. A young couple in their early 20s and 30s with young school-age children face the most critical estate planning need of their lifetimes, because their primary concern is ensuring that their children are cared for pursuant to their wishes, desires and values in-case both parents die prematurely. Disabling accidents also happens! Young couples’ children are their utmost concern and primarily responsibility. Young couples may have little concern of preservation or accumulation wealth in their early marriage. Their wealth may be modest in their 20s and 30s. But their families are growing with precious children coming into their lives. The management of life insurance proceeds, the selection of guardians, and the protection of assets until children reach adulthood; these are high priorities of young families. These estate planning issues are the primary concerns and they ought to be top estate planning priorities of young couples.
Why Guardianship for Minor Children?
The primary role, task and responsibility of parents are to raise their children and provide them with a safe, secure and protective environment so that they can become all that they can be and grow-up to contribute to a just and righteous society. Parents should guard over this right to raise their children against all who would attempt to come in between them and their children. Under Texas Estates Code Section 1104.051, if both parents are living together, both are the natural guardians of the person of their minor children pursuant to the Texas Estate Code. If both parents die, a court will appoint a guardian for the minor children. Critically, under Texas Estates Code Section 1104.053, a surviving parent may designate a guardian for minor children in a last will & testament or written declaration of guardian, and after the surviving parent’s death, the court will appoint the designated person in preference to others unless the designated person is found to be disqualified, deceased, unwilling, or that appointment would not serve the child’s best interests according to Texas Estate Code Section 1104.053. If no designation is made, the court follows a statutory order of preference beginning with the nearest ascendant in the direct line pursuant to Texas Estate Code Section 1104.052. Parents advance planning can avoid your loosing control of what happens to your children in the event you become disabled, incapacitated or die while your children are yet minors.
This is what couples should consider upon the birth of their child: Young parents should execute last wills & testaments immediately upon having children, naming a guardian of the person (who will care for the child) and a guardian or trustee of the estate (who will manage the child’s inherited assets). These may be the same or different individuals. Guardianship designation through a last will & testament or written declaration of guardianship is among the most powerful reasons for young parents to have even a basic estate plan in place. The alternative is to wait and do nothing — court guardianship proceedings are intense, strict, exacting and costly court probate court proceeding! Plan to avoid them, if at all possible, by engaging in proper estate planning with an experienced estate planning lawyer.
Parents you can control what happens to your children; if you, unfortunately passes away or become disabled to the point of loosing your powers or capacities to make decisions concerning your personal affairs or financial affairs. Young couples in their 20s and 30s should; early in their marriages should discuss and explore basic estate planning tools; such as, last wills & testaments, declaration of guardian, powers of attorney, medical directives and other estate planning tools as the estate planning lawyers at Coleman Jackson, P.C. can advise.
Why Young Couples Should Consider Testamentary Trusts for Minor Children?
A simple will can contain a testamentary trust for minor children, directing that life insurance proceeds and other assets be held in trust until children reach a specified age (often 25 or 30). The testamentary trust does not avoid probate (assets must pass through the will), but it provides management and protection of funds during minority and young adulthood without requiring the complexity of a living trust. Remember, estate planning is love memorialized. This basic testamentary trust can be designed and used to protect your minor children’s estate (things, stuff, assets) until they reach an adult age where you feel they are responsible with money, as the estate planning lawyers at Coleman Jackson, P.C. can explain.
Why Should Young Couples Care About Special Needs Trusts?
Negative life events happen all the time! Sometimes babies are born disabled. Sometimes perfectly healthy children have accidents— sports accidents, fishing accidents, driving accidents, school accidents and violence, accidents caused by their own excesses of immaturity, work accidents, and many other negative life events; unplanned events that are too numerous to list them all. It is simply best to engage in estate planning for unfortunate events that can occur, that might occur, and that do occur— they are a part of life.
Key Take Aways
For families with a disabled child or dependent, a special needs trust underTexas Property Code Section 142.005 can be an important planning tool. Texas law authorizes the creation of such trusts to provide for the care and support of disabled individuals while preserving eligibility for government benefits. These trusts must be established in accordance with federal Medicaid laws and Texas laws. Help from an experienced estate planning lawyer could help you to explore your families’ special needs trusts.
Young couples should care about estate planning early on in their marriages and should consult with an estate planning lawyer as an intricate part of their marriage preparation, and clearly before they have children. There are lots of estate planning tools available—estate planning depends upon the young couples’ goals, their family wishes, and their overall family’s objectives. There is other estate planning tools available as young couples grow their families, buys their first home and accumulate other wealth. Visit our tax law, business law and estate law firm’s website often as we write legal articles frequently on tax law, business law and estate law topics that might interest and benefit young couples starting out. Texas has enacted a Transfer on Death (TOD) Deed under Texas Estate Code Ann. §§ 114.002–114.106. Our estate law attorneys are likely to write an article on this topic and others like in at some point in time. Come back often to read our upcoming legal articles.
This law article is written by attorneys at Coleman Jackson, P.C., which is located at 6060 North Central Expressway, Suite 620, Dallas, Texas 75206, for educational purposes; it does not create an attorney-client relationship between this tax law, business law, and estate law firm and its reader. You should consult with legal counsel in your geographical area with respect to any legal issues impacting you, your family, or your business.
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