Estate Planning Forms and Documents

Estate Planning Forms and Documents Can Make A Difference

Good estate planning forms and documents are so important, It can be tricky to get them. Many places will offer you free estate planning forms to get you in. If you get free estate planning forms you will probably get quality comparable to what you pay for them. Because estate planning requires more than one form, you will also be required to pay for the rest of the forms you need to get a complete set of estate planning documents. Like everything else, estate planning is buyer beware. Educate your self about what you need before you jump into something you will later regret.

All estates require a certain amount of estate planning forms customization. Every estate planning attorney begins with a set of forms but then they interview you and find out what is unique to your estate. Next they pick the forms you need and then they customize those forms to fit your situation.

For example, you may look at your children and realize that they are not responsible enough to manage your estate wisely at age twenty-one. You realize that while they need some money to pay for college, you want to withhold the rest until they hit age thirty and hopefully grow up some. So your forms must be customized to take care of this situation.

Or, you may wish to hold some of your estate to help one of your children with special health needs. These are a couple of examples of dozens of needs that should be addressed in good estate planning forms.

Too many people go into their attorney and say I need an estate plan, set me up. The attorney does exactly that. He sets them up. The attorney may or may not customize the forms as needed, but he will give them an estate plan that requires them to return to his office. It is job security. He can bill during their life and after they die. This does not need to happen.

You can accomplish the same form customization by yourself with an effective estate planning program. The program will show you what to look for in your estate and then help you generate a living trust, pour over wills, powers of attorney, living wills and other estate planning documents that you may require.

You can do your own legal work and be effective. The trick is to understand what you need. Even if you don’t wish to “do it yourself,” it is important to understand what you need so you can direct your attorney. Take the time to see what you need so you can get good estate planning documents.