Planning your estate is a task that many people put off for a later time. They often assume that estate planning is something that tends to be addressed relatively late in life.
In truth, there is no universally “correct” time to begin the estate planning process. Whether someone should or should not begin planning their estate depends on a range of factors, such as whether they feel they’ve built up sufficient wealth and acquired enough assets to justify making decisions about how their wealth may be allocated in the future. But, the amount of wealth is not o much a factor as to ‘when’ to plan, but rather, how the plan will be structured.
Whether of not you have amassed a robust estate fairly early in life, or you’re working to accumulate, or you currently have only some basics, there needed planning steps that should be taken. Benefits of doing so include the following:
Preparing for the Unexpected
Estate planning is typically thought of as something a person focuses on when they are reaching old age because that is when they are nearing the end of their life. No. While it’s not a pleasant topic to think about, it’s important to accept that the end of one’s life may come earlier than expected for a number of reasons outside of one’s control. Thus, completing the estate planning process fairly early can give a young person the peace of mind that comes from knowing they’ve already dealt with certain essential matters should they pass suddenly and unexpectedly. If you wait until it’s needed, then it’s too late to do it.
Ensuring Someone is Authorized to Make Key Decisions
Although people in their thirties or even forties might consider themselves to be too young to devote much attention to estate planning, experts suggest that adults begin planning their estates as soon as they turn 18. A young person just beginning their life as an independent adult should ensure they have trusted people and helpers who can act on their behalf as power of attorney, can serve as their health care proxy, or both. No matter how young someone is, they can benefit from giving certain individuals and parties the powers needed to make key decisions on their behalf should they become incapacitated.
These are just a few reasons young people should strongly consider making their estate planning a key priority. At the Law Offices of Andrew Cohen, offering estate planning services in and around Santa Clarita, California, we believe completing it early helps a young adult, and their family, whether their own parents, sibling, spouse or children, to generally live more comfortably and easily later. Learn more about how we can help by calling us at 661-481-0100 or contacting us online today.
