No one really wants to think about what will happen to their family once they are gone, but deciding on a plan now can offer your family financial security and minimize any headaches in the future. You can protect your family in the event of your death by creating an estate plan.
An estate plan ensures your instructions are carried out the way you wish, allowing you to name the people you want to receive your assets, along with when and how they receive them. Proper estate planning should also ensure your estate is given to your family with the least amount of taxes, legal fees, or court expenses.
Duffy Kruspodin, LLP is known to provide some of the best estate planning services San Diego has to offer. We’ve been providing trusted estate planning services in San Diego for more than 25 years. Our team of seasoned tax, accounting, and financial professionals is committed to helping our clients plan for their family’s financial future. We offer customizable solutions for your estate planning needs so you can have peace of mind knowing your family will be cared for when you’re gone. We’ll help you organize your financial records, titles, insurance policies, and assets and will take care of the legal work to make sure you have a plan in place.
5 Reasons Estate Planning Is Essential to You & Your Family
1. Give Your Family Financial Security
By designating which family members have access to your estate, you can ensure they have a means to some type of financial security. Whether you leave them real estate or access to your bank accounts, taking care of your estate planning now will protect your family from financial hardships down the road.
2. Protect Your Assets
Even if you feel like you do not have many things to leave behind, without an estate plan, you will not have any say in what happens to your assets once you pass. The main function of estate planning is designating your property to specific beneficiaries or heirs. Without an estate plan, your family will be forced to divide up your property, which can often lead to messy court battles, a process that can take years.
3. Prevent Strife Among Your Loved Ones
Even a family who normally gets along can end up feuding once there is property, money, or assets on the table. By creating an estate, you get to decide who controls your finances and assets so there is no question about it—or chance to squabble—after you are gone.
4. Help Your Family Avoid Large Estate Taxes
If you are working with a professional to help plan your estate, you can reduce the amount of federal and state estate taxes (or state inheritance taxes) your family would have to pay. However, if you do not make an effort to do any estate planning, there is a high chance that taxes could eat away at the amount of money or property you had planned on leaving your loved ones.
5. Give Yourself Peace of Mind
Getting your estate planned now means you won’t have to worry about your family suffering if something should unexpectedly happen to you. Knowing you have a plan in place—one that will adhere to your instructions and protect your family—should give you peace of mind that your loved ones will be taken care of. Plus, if your financial or family situation changes later on, you can always go back and amend your plan.
Why You Should Trust a Consultant to Help with Your Estate Planning
If your estate is large or complex, we highly recommend you hire a professional to help with planning. Even if your estate seems relatively straightforward, an estate planner can help you map out your family’s future and tie up any loose ends. To make sure all your last wishes are fulfilled and to ensure your family pays minimal estate taxes, you will want to hire an experienced estate-planning consultant.
Finding an experienced estate planning consultant can have incredible benefits for your family in the long run. If you are looking for help with estate planning, San Diego has many options, and Duffy Kruspodin, LLP has decades of tax, accounting, and estate planning experience to help you make sure all your wishes are addressed and your family is taken care of. If you have any questions or would like to take the first steps in protecting your family’s future, contact our San Diego location by calling 858-642-5050.
