Colorado Estate Planning
Estate development includes issuing your assets after death to such people or causes according to your wish with least legal worries and the lowest tax incidence. And estate planning is not only for the wealthy; nor is it something to be considered when you reach the age of eighty.
Anyone, regardless of age, with great assets and the wish to offer dear ones even after death would be doing an abundant service by preparing one’s estate. And the best time to make your estate is now when you are still alive and have the necessary mental health to make sensible judgments. Estate plan made in the period of an illness affecting contracting ability can be challenged, complicating matters for receivers. Don’t forget, death or a devastating illness affecting your legal ability to contract might slowdown you any day; so, you should make provision for that eventuality earlier.
The very first stage in planning your estate is to take stock of all your material assets (officially referred to as ‘estate’), and then decide their price. Typical items including the estate comprise: house(s) and land; cars, bikes, planes and boats; cash-in-hand; savings accounts, pension accounts; certificates of deposits; stocks, bonds, and mutual funds; insurance and annuities; employee benefits, art collections; jewelry, furniture, ownership rights/interests in businesses; and claims against others. Keep in mind that the list is not complete and your debts and responsibilities to others are also a portion of your estate.
Next, line up the details of your beneficiaries – names, addresses, and ages. In addition, you should determine who should be the trustees/guardians in case the beneficiaries are minors at the time of planning the estate. Also, you must identify an executor of the estate. It would be easy if you line up pre and post-nuptial agreements, divorce decrees, previous wills, deeds of real estate property, and latest tax returns before you consult a professional estate planner.
Though small estates might be easy to plan, it is advisable to take the help of professional estate planners, including attorneys and CPAs, to explore all the possibilities to reduce tax incidence.
Remember, estate planning is not a one-time affair. Any change in your marital status, the death of beneficiaries, a birth of a child, or changes in the law will require a review of the plan.