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It is commonly noted by financial planners that the areas of estate planning and asset protection are two of the most overlooked financial planning topics. Many people tend to focus on retirement and investment allocation, but often forget to protect those assets they spent significant portions of their time and effort building. Protecting those assets, as well as planning for the future are extremely important parts of financial planning and overall financial well being. When selecting an estate planning attorney, be sure to pick a lawyer who has signifcant experience dealing with estate planning, and also has a well rounded background in the subject. Practice areas of estate planning firms typically include basic and advanced estate planning, elder law, probate and trust administration, business succession planning, and more. Estate planning services generally include wills and revocable living trusts, durable powers of attorney, healthcare proxies, living wills, irrevocable trusts, charitable and education trusts, among others. Elder law services will typically include Medicaid/Masshealth long-term care planning for nursing home care, Medicaid asset-sprotection trusts, guardianships, and conservatorships. It is important to research and learn about estate planning prior to seeing an attorney, in order to gain a grasp of what you can expect. Look for an attorney who takes a hands-on approach, and personally guides his clients through each and every stage of the planning process. At the initial meeting you can expect the attorney to listen carefully to the yourconcerns and learn about your unique personal, family and financial situation. As a result you should have established a comprehensive estate plan to address their concerns and situation. The core goal of all good planning is to protect your assets so most of them end up going to benefit your family, and are not lost along the way to taxes, court costs, creditors, or divorce. At the second meeting you will generally work together with you and other advisors, tailoring the estate plan to achieve your unique values and goals. Once the plan is written, you will have to sign the plan documents. If the plan includes a living trust, you will have to fund (or transfer title of their assets into) your new trust. Every lifetime plan developed should strive to leave your hard-earned property on to your family and protect against loss through from high nursing home costs. Again, when selecting a estate planning attorney be sure to check references, prior work history, and be sure that you will ultimately be happy with the end results. Protecting your hard earned assets is often overlooked, but don't be one of the bunch that regret not having estate planning settled before it is too late. John Stone recommends Deschene Law Office as a very knowledgeable Rhode Island and Massachusetts estate and asset protection attorney.
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