Tag Archive for: durable power of attorney

Legal and Financial Actions To Take Right Now in Light of COVID-19

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As you already know,  the COVID-19 pandemic means nothing is business as usual. Many states have implemented a “shelter-in-place” order to limit the spread of the disease.  Once you have attended to your (and your parents’) immediate needs, it will be time to consider more long term precautions.

During this time of stress and chaos, your parents may be resistant to talking about estate planning. It may feel too pessimistic to plan for the worst in the midst of a scary situation. However, that’s exactly why it’s the most important time to do so. Here are actions you can, and should, take to ensure you and your family are protected both legally and financially.

Update Your Health Care Documents

Above all, you first need to ensure that both you and your parents have advance care directives. This will be an invaluable reference point for those who are assisting you, whether they be friends, family, or medical professionals. This directive should include instructions on your preferred methods of care and the contact information for each of your doctors. Name your healthcare Surrogates.

Durable Power of Attorney

You must also clearly state who will be in charge of handling your affairs in the event of your death or incapacity. Even if you have done this already, I urge you to take out any existing documents now and review them. Have your circumstances changed? Do you have additions to make? Encourage your parents to do the same thing, and to communicate with you about what their directives say.

Here’s an article to read, and share with your parents (and adult kids, if you have them) on the 3 parts of a Health Care Directive, and the 5 things you want to look for in your Health Care Directive right now, to ensure it’s up to date for Covid-19.

If you are unsure whether your Health Care Directive is in ship-shape, call us at (727) 410-2705, to get an expert to look at it.

Create a “Personal Resource Map”—an Inventory of Everything That Matters

You might think that only the very rich need to worry about making specific plans for their assets. But not so fast. Do you have investments or a retirement account? Physical things like jewelry, musical instruments, or furniture? What about crypto? Or even social media accounts? In the event of your incapacity or death, your family members won’t know where to look for what you have, or how to access it, unless you’ve planned for that ahead of time.

Somewhere between 49 and 80 billion dollars are currently unclaimed, or unable to be claimed, by family members of people who have passed away. This is money that individuals may have forgotten they had, or that they made no provisions to pass on to their family after they died. That’s why it’s extra important that you create a “personal resource map” to tell your loved ones where everything is and how they should move forward according to your wishes.

Wisely Maximize Your Access To and Use of Credit

Financial experts often recommend a rainy day savings account.  Maximize your access to credit now.  If you find yourself in a position where you need money quickly (to afford a medical expense, for instance), you don’t want to be scrambling to pay the bill.

Some people might balk at the idea of applying for more personal credit, particularly people who are afraid of debt. Think of it, however, as a worst-case precaution. You can get approved for credit even if you have a decent amount of savings—just as a backup. If you need reassurance, or if you need some help encouraging your parents to get approved for a higher credit line, you can contact us to walk you through your options.

Remember that it’s never an inappropriate time to plan for the future. It’s also always a good time to ask for legal and financial help. #WereAllInThisTogether and we’re here to support you, virtually now, as well. We can take care of you, and your family, fully online, or in the office.  Call us, at (727) 410-2705 we’re here for you.

 

 

Carol A. Lawson, Esq., 28870 U.S. Hwy 19 #300, Hodusa Towers, Clearwater, FL 33761

Phone: (727) 410-2705;   email: calh@gate.net

 Clearwater Bankruptcy Attorney, Clearwater Bankruptcy Lawyer, Clearwater Bankruptcy, Clearwater Estate Planning Attorney,  Pinellas Estate Planning Attorney, Pinellas Probate Attorney #FileLocallyDontOverpay #ClearwaterBankruptcy #ClearwaterBankruptcyAttorney#ClearwaterEstatePlanningAttorney                           #PinellasProbateAttorney

 

Why You Need a Durable Power of Attorney

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Client’s often ask why can’t I just put my child on my bank account with me.  One of the things that I’m looking at is, how do they own their assets, who actually owns their asset who is on their bank account, who is on the title to their real estate. Often I discover that a client will have an adult child on their bank account with them.

Why is your child on that bank account with you? Is it  for convenience purposes?   Is it if you’re in the hospital, or traveling, or need your child to pay bills, they can do so because they’re on the account?

There’s a lot of downsides unfortunately, to having your child on your bank account with you.  The first one is liability. If your child gets into a car accident, get sued files, bankruptcy, maybe even files for divorce then your bank account could be subject to that child’s creditors or property distribution.

The second reason it’s a bad idea to have your child on your bank accounts with you is because it could affect your child down the road if they are applying for government assistance such as Social Security disability benefits, because they have access to, even though it’s not their money, your assets making them ineligible for benefits.  The third reason it’s a bad idea to have your child as a co-owner of your bank accounts is you’re basically giving your child carte blanche to your money, they can go in do whatever they want to with your money.  It’s going to be very difficult to get any money back if your child or to steal money from you, or otherwise, mishandle the funds, because you trusted him, you put him on the account, you gifted the value of the account.  The fourth reason it’s a bad idea in a lot of situations to name your child as co-owner of your accounts is that when you die, the bank account continues to belong to that child.  If you have multiple children, and the intent is to divide the account among all of your children, the child on the account does not have any legal obligation to share it with their siblings, even if your will says to do so the ownership of the account trump’s your will, and the money belongs to your one child who was co-owner of the account.

My job is to play devil’s advocate. They’re not going to share the money with their siblings in most cases.   Assuming they did share and If it’s a large enough amount then that is considered a gift now from the child to their siblings, and they might have the burden of having to file a gift tax return with the IRS to disclose those gifts.  If they later file bankruptcy, the bankruptcy trustee could go back void the transfers and force your other children to pay the money they received into the bankruptcy estate.  How do you get around this?  Remove your child from your bank account.  Your child will have to agree to be removed from the bank account.  Put the account back into just your name, sign a power of attorney, you can name that same child, giving them authority to help you out with your banking affairs. Give a copy of that power of attorney to the bank.

That child can now continue to pay bills on your behalf out of your account and help you manage the account.  If you want to avoid probate of the account, when you die, sign what’s called a POD ( payable on death beneficiary form) with the bank for that account.  List whoever you want to inherit the account upon your death, that might be the one child it might be all of your children. Some financial institutions call it TOD form (transfer on death form). By signing that form, you’re naming beneficiaries for the account.  After your death, all the beneficiaries will need to do is present a death certificate and the account will be dispersed among all of your beneficiaries.   If you have questions about this or anything else related to your estate, and you’re a Florida resident, I would be more than happy to handle your planning and answer your questions.

 

 

Carol A. Lawson, Esq., 28870 U.S. Hwy 19 #300, Hodusa Towers, Clearwater, FL 33761

Phone: (727) 410-2705;   email: calh@gate.net

 Clearwater Bankruptcy Attorney, Clearwater Bankruptcy Lawyer, Clearwater Bankruptcy, Clearwater Estate Planning Attorney,  Pinellas Estate Planning Attorney, Pinellas Probate Attorney #FileLocallyDontOverpay #ClearwaterBankruptcy #ClearwaterBankruptcyAttorney #ClearwaterEstatePlanning #ClearwaterProbate

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