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Attorneys That Handle Wills Can Help Your Estate Planning

Making future plans for your property is easier if you work with attorneys that handle wills, especially in a complex situation.

We know. There’s aren’t many of us who want to think about estate planning, finding attorneys that handle wills, or anything that reminds us of our mortality. In addition to that, the whole process can throw a lot of unexpected challenges in your direction. With tax laws and gifting laws changing from one state to another, it’s critical to work with someone that knows the ins and outs of how your state operates.

You can’t just hire any attorney for this task. Attorneys that handle wills can give you the best information to create an efficient and tax-advantaged estate plan. There is an important distinction to make between certain types of attorneys. Some will help you create a will or trust to make the future process easier on your family. Other attorneys will work with your family after you’ve passed to help them clear up complications and disputes.

You can limit complications and disputes by working with a good estate attorney on your will in the first place. Still, if something does come up, they may not be the same person helping your family resolve the issues.

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Understand the benefits of finding attorneys that handle wills

A probate attorney is a lawyer that your family members would seek the counsel of in the event of disputes. In some situations, the same lawyer will handle both ends of the estate process, but this is not always the case. Check with any attorney that you work with to see what their licensing allows for. It could be best to work with one lawyer who will work with your entire family throughout the process, but there could be other advantages to certain lawyers.

You can talk as much as you’d like with your family or an attorney about what you would like to have happen when you pass away, but it won’t set anything in stone until you work with the right attorney to make sure things will happen the way you want. They will best know how to structure your will and estate to pass certain things to certain people and do it in a way that won’t create unnecessary burdens on the surviving members of your family.

Just because you set things up right, people still might want things to turn out differently and could try to create problems. By working with good attorneys - especially if they can handle the probate process as well - you ensure that these rogue actors won’t be able to poke holes in the plans you’ve made for your family.

Recognize if it makes sense for you to search for attorneys that handle wills

Many people think they don’t need to worry about creating a will until they are much older. In some cases, that can be too late. Unforeseen death is always possible, and other tragic events could render you unable to make such decisions.

No matter your age, if you have any assets or property that you want to distribute a specific way when you pass, you should search for attorneys that handle wills in your area to see what you can do. The National Association of Estate Planners is a good place to start your search.

What concerns do you have with the estate planning process?

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Nancy Zambell has spent 30 years educating and helping individual investors navigate the minefields of the financial industry. She has created and/or written numerous investment publications, including UnDiscovered Stocks, UnTapped Opportunities, and Nancy Zambell’s Buried Treasures under $10. Nancy has worked with MoneyShow.com for many years as an editor and interviewer for their on-site video studios.