Estate Planning Inventory

Estate planning is a fancy term for trying to soften the impact of your death on those you leave behind. When considering the meaning of the term, most people probably think of things like wills and the need to distribute a deceased person's assets. Certainly, a big part of estate planning deals with clearly establishing who gets what after you are gone and making sure that your wishes are carried out in your absence. However, estate planning deals with a whole lot more, as you will learn if you read on.

Looking beyond the actual material possessions you leave behind, an important part of estate planning is preserving those possessions from unintended recipients. Whether it is that greedy aunt you've always hated, the IRS, or the exotic dancer you met in Texas shortly before your death, you can be sure that anyone who can lay claim to your assets will attempt to do so after you are gone. Careful estate planning can eliminate most of the feeding frenzy that often occurs after a person dies.

Presumably, if you are trying to protect your estate from unintended recipients, you must have somebody in mind to leave your worldly goods to. Coincidentally, another big part of estate planning is providing for those you leave behind. Although financial matters and asset transfers continue to play a major role here as well, there is so much more for you to consider. Estate planning involves providing for the well being and continued care for those you leave behind. Whether you are concerned about leaving a handicapped dependent, a minor child, or a cherished pet, estate planning involves creating solutions that help protect those who must carry on without you.

Estate planning also involves trying to make provisions in advance for the hundreds of details that are associated with a person's death. Do you want your remains to be buried or just toasted and scattered? If you lived like a king or queen and want to be buried like one, have you planned ahead (financially and otherwise) for this event? These are some of the questions that are raised during the estate planning process.

Finally, estate planning involves a good deal of psychology. It involves coming to grips with our own mortality and dealing with our eventual demise. A deceased's prior estate planning also eases the transition for those left behind and helps reduce the amount of stress during an already chaotic time.

If you are starting to get the feeling that estate planning is important, you are on the right track. If you are mature enough to have already considered investment planning, insurance planning, or retirement planning, it should only be a slight stretch more for you to consider estate planning. After all, accumulating wealth and preserving and controlling its disposition really go hand in hand.

To help you with your own estate planning, take a look at the following information we provide:

• Estate Planning Overview: If you are not yet fully convinced that estate planning is important, find out more information about this valuable type of planning. For those that like a big picture approach to their explanations, we provide an overview of how everything comes together in the estate planning process.
• Wills: You've heard about them. You've seen them on television and in movies. Now, find out the real story behind this death-defying document that is part of the estate planning process. Also, find out what happens if you are caught dead without a will.
• Estate Taxes: If there was ever a combination that didn't belong together, it's death and taxes. Discover how your federal and state governments reward themselves while you are reaping your eternal reward after your death. More importantly, find out what you can do to stop the government from unduly profiting from your death.
• Using Trusts in Estate Planning: Here we discuss the use of trusts in the estate planning process. Not only will you learn about the basics of a trust, you will also learn when and how to use each one to meet your particular estate planning needs.