If you only have the time to make a single estate planning document, make a will. Your last will and testament will determine who among your loved ones receives the possessions, assets, and property you leave behind. By laying out your wishes in writing, a will allows you to influence what becomes of who and what you leave behind and can even include other important details like your preferences for the guardianship of minor children.

Without a will, however, your estate is left in the hands of the government, and that is rarely a pleasant situation for your loved ones. If you pass away without a valid will, you are considered “intestate,” and Florida law decides who your belongings and property go to without any regard to your wishes, relationships, or feelings.

However, there are limits to what a will can do, which means that while it is an essential part of any estate planning, it might not be enough for everyone in Tampa. A will cannot hold on to money and distribute it over time, nor can it protect you while you are still alive, which gives it a number of limitations. Thus, even if you already have a will, you may want to check with an experienced estate planning attorney to make sure it is sufficient for your needs.

Four Estate Planning Objectives That A Will Alone Cannot Handle

• Protecting You And Yours In Case Of Incapacitation

A will only kicks in if/when you pass away; until then, it has no control over your life or affairs. But it is quite possible to become incapable of making financial and legal decisions before your death, sometimes long before it. Chances are, you can think of one relative or friend in the Tampa area to whom this happened.

To avoid your loved ones having to go to court to make decisions for you or get the power to spend your money on your care, you will need to add powers of attorney and an advanced healthcare directive to your estate planning documents. They are both, however, quite simple, even straightforward documents to make, especially with the help of an experienced lawyer.

• Caring For Loved Ones With Special Needs

If some of the relatives you wish to leave money or property to have special needs or are on some form of government benefits, your gift could end up making their lives worse if you are not careful. Too large a gift could cut them off from important benefits and make them vulnerable to unscrupulous folks in the process.

Instead, you could set up a special needs trust with the help of an estate planning attorney. Such a trust allows you to leave funds or property for the benefit of a loved one with special needs without risking the loss of their benefits. This is because the trust, not the individual, owns those assets and will spend them over time according to your wishes.

• Staying Out Of Probate Court

While a will is usually sufficient to get your affairs in order, it still has to go through the probate process to be properly executed and applied. Some families may wish to avoid this process altogether, as it is not private, can take time, and leaves the estate’s administration vulnerable to challenges and contestation.

It is possible to avoid probate entirely with the right estate planning measures. For example, by fully funding a trust with all your assets and property, you can have them “skip” probate as they will no longer be under your name, but the trust’s instead.

• Planning For Medicaid

Long-term care and other healthcare expenses can quickly become outrageous as we age, and if you do not get some assistance, you might not be able to afford it or end up burning through all the assets you wish to pass on in the process. For Tampa families, Medicaid can be a blessing when trying to pay for long-term care, but many will not be able to qualify because of the wealth and income requirements.

With the right estate planning tools, well in advance of when you might need to qualify for long term care under Medicaid, you can set up your financial situation to be eligible for these benefits. This has to be done well in advance however to avoid running afoul of the five year lookback period, so if you want to ensure Medicaid will cover your long term care, you should probably start planning for it today.

Myrna Serrano Setty | Your Peace Of Mind Is Our Business

Online estate planning tools and less scrupulous attorneys might be happy to hand you a basic will and send you on your way. Other estate planning attorneys will try, at all costs, to get you to sign up for needless, complex tools you do not really need. Our approach is different.

During your appointment with our estate planning lawyer, Myrna Serrano Setty, she will sit down with you to figure out what your priorities and objectives are, then explain the options for accomplishing them in terms anyone can understand.

Whether that means getting a will or going beyond it to complete a more advanced estate plan is entirely up to you. To get started, just call (813) 686-7175 or reach out online to set up a consultation in Tampa. Soon enough, this process will be behind you, and you can enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing your loved ones will be cared for the way you want them to be.