Planning and Organization

For many of you, the bulk of the estate ("stuff") that you will be passing on to your loved ones is controlled not by your will, a trust or the probate court, but by the beneficiaries you designated on forms filed with financial institutions. 401(k)'s, IRAs, and Life Insurance policies will be distributed at your death based on whom you have chosen as a beneficiary.

Based on my conversations with clients, I'm betting that many of you have not checked those designations in a very long time - if ever.

What can happen if you name the wrong beneficiary or No beneficiary?

First, let's talk about what may happen if you name no beneficiary. If you do not name a beneficiary for a life insurance policy, after your death an estate will have to be opened to receive the money from that policy.
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July is Sandwich Generation Awareness Month.  The Sandwich Generation refers to those people, mostly in their mid-40’s to late 50’s, who are caring for aging parents as well as caring for young children or dependent young adult children.  If you are the meat or peanut butter in that sandwich, you might be looking for help from your siblings or other family members.  One of the best ways to plan the care for an aging or disabled family member is by holding a family meeting.  The meeting is designed to do many things:  get information from the aging or disabled person about their needs, figure out what kind of care is needed and brainstorm about ways to find that care, gauge the financial resources available for care, and assign duties to various family members so that one caregiver does not get burned out.

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