As a person gets older, they tend to give more thought to the wealth and properties they have garnered all through their lifetime. What happens to your real property, intellectual property, and personal property when you die? How will your minors (children less than 18) receive your assets when you die before they come of age? Who would be in charge of your business, financial accounts, and make important decisions for you when you become unable to do so due to Alzheimer’s or age? All these are important questions to ask, and through comprehensive estate planning, you can answer these questions and plan for them.

Get help from a Florida estate planning attorney

Since estate planning is a legal matter which must conform with your state’s estate law, a Florida estate planning attorney is the one to call on. A Florida estate planning attorney is a specialized lawyer well-versed in the estate laws of Florida, who offers legal guidance to residents in creating an effective estate plan.

A personalized estate plan

As a law firm based in Florida, our estate planning attorneys are available to assist you in creating a personalized estate plan that works best for you. Estate planning is never a one-size-fits-all affair, and that is why we listen to our clients and discuss their estate situation and goals with them in order to ascertain what needs to be done.

Our services

When hired, your Florida estate planning attorney will offer your assistance and help you plan for the following:

Asset transfer

After death, that you own must be passed down to others since they cannot leave this earth with you. The process of transferring these assets is often a lengthy and complicated one, and Florida estate laws may cause your assets to end up in less deserving hands unless you specify who you want your assets to go to. With the use of certain estate planning tools, you can make financial provisions for those who mean dear to you.

Asset transfer tools include but are not limited to the following:

• Wills: A will is a simple estate planning document on which you lay down instructions regarding how you want your assets distributed, and who you want them to go to. You can leave your houses, bank accounts, business, belongings etc. to your loved ones by naming them as your beneficiaries in your Will. However, assets passed by a will must pass through a lengthy court process known as probate.

• Living Trusts: a trust is an agreement between you (the trustor) and a fiduciary (your trustee) for them to hold assets on behalf of your beneficiary. With a living trust, you can be the trustee of your own trust, and transfer assets to your beneficiary even while you yet live. Trusts offer probate avoidance and immediate asset transfer.

Asset protection

Through asset protection, you can keep your assets free from creditor claims and tax liabilities. Your Florida estate planning attorney can help in creating an irrevocable trust that offers this benefit.

Disability planning

Disability planning gives you lifetime control over your financial and medical affairs even when you have disability or incapacity. When planning for disability, you have to appoint someone who you trust to make healthcare financial and legal decisions on your behalf when you are unable to do so. There are important documents which your estate planning attorney will incorporate into your disability planning.

Financial power of attorney: This is a document by which you appoint someone to make financial decisions for you during incapacity

Healthcare power of attorney: the healthcare power of attorney allows you to appoint an agent to make medical decisions on your behalf during incapacity.

Tax planning

Despite the absence of state estate tax in Florida, your estate may be subject to federal estate taxes depending on its value. Taxes can eat deep into your financial purse, and to ensure your loved ones get all that they should, you can avoid or minimize estate taxes through proper tax planning. Our estate planning attorneys are also highly proficient in designing an estate plan that minimizes your tax liabilities.

Contact us to Speak with a Florida estate planning attorney

Although you can create a Will using templates, there are situations which require professional handling. Your estate may require more than a Will to actualize your wishes; probate and tax require proper planning to minimize, and estate laws are ever-changing. Our lawyers stay updated with Florida estate laws, and will ensure that your wishes concerning your financial and personal affairs, estate and loved ones are adequately met.

Put a call through to speak with one of our Florida estate planning attorneys.