Estate Planning In Houston
Houston is a large metropolitan area and there is a lot of wealth in the area. Families and individuals have done well for themselves here, and they’ve developed legacies they should be proud of. Families in Houston must turn to an estate planning lawyer to protect all the work, and effort and legacy they’ve built up over their working life.
At Griffin, Cain & Herbig, Attorneys at Law, PLLC, we’re lawyers working hard for people in Houston. As estate planning lawyers, our goal is to build the estate plan you need to accomplish your long-term goals. Estate planning is an often-neglected process, but we want to help you clear up any misconceptions and be confident in your choices.
What Will Happen To Your Assets Without An Estate Plan
Not having an estate plan in place means that when you pass on your estate all the assets in it will go through probate and distribution per state law. This is the intestate distribution process. The law will divide your estate first among your spouse and children, and then among more distant relations, if there is no family in place.
Additionally, without any planning, your estate will likely undergo the maximum impact of estate taxes and probate costs. Claims against the estate will be lengthy and time-consuming. Any size estate that does not have an estate plan creates an inordinate amount of stress and challenge for the heirs and beneficiaries when there is no estate plan.
What Goes Into An Estate Plan?
A common misconception is that an estate plan is one document. It is, in fact, a group of documents working together. A savvy, well-crafted estate plan is a symphony of paperwork, each piece providing clarity and guidance to one aspect of your estate and working in concert to create something larger than any single piece.
The documents that make up an estate plan include:
- Advance directives: Your advanced directives explain how you would like to be cared for when you cannot take care of yourself. This could be when you’re incapacitated after an accident or if you undergo mental deterioration due to dementia.
- Last will and testament: This is a major guide for the estate and dictates the deceased’s wishes as well as a list of assets and where they should go.
- Power of attorney: These are documents that empower an individual to make financial and medical decisions for you in case you are incapacitated in some way. This differs from advanced directives, as your power of attorney has broad authority over complex issues that aren’t as simple as a do not resuscitate order.
- Trusts: Trusts are legal entities that can house assets and keep them outside of your estate, allowing those assets to avoid probate and estate taxes.
Largely, estate and gift planning will fall into two categories charitable planning and family gifting. Charitable planning is where you will create a trust to provide funds to a charity of your choice. Alternatively, you could assign a percentage of your estate to a charity, as part of your will.
Family gifting, such as gifting to grandchildren, must happen while you are alive. The law in Texas allows a certain amount of tax-free gifting. How much and how often you can give in this manner is a discussion you can have with us.
Talk To Us In Houston
As estate planning lawyers, we look forward to helping you build the plans that you and your family need. Your estate plan is an effort of care. Let us get to work building it for you. Call 281-524-6979 or send an email using this form.