Estate Planning Done Right: Ensuring Assets Go Where They Belong

In 2008, Congress passed a Resolution designating the third week of October as “National Estate Planning Awareness Week” to shine a light on the millions of Americans who do not have up-to-date estate plans. Today, many people continue to overlook critical steps when establishing their estate plan. Others mistakenly believe that estate planning is only for the wealthy. This misconception leads them to dismiss its importance, unaware of the unintended consequences that can arise.

A 2024 survey found that 14% more Americans cited a lack of assets as their reason for not having a will compared to 2023. Additionally, estate planning among lower-income Americans has declined by 16%¹.

 

In fact, regardless of overall wealth and net worth, estate planning is for every adult who has ever wondered:

⇒ Who will make decisions for me if I cannot make them for myself?

⇒ What will happen to my money when I die?

⇒ How can I make sure my money goes to my loved ones?

⇒ What will happen if I pass away while my children are still minors?

It is the process of determining and documenting how your estate should be handled upon your incapacity or death by getting the right assets to the right people at the right time and in the right way. Estate planning is an ongoing process as life events, changing financial circumstances, and even the mere passage of time triggers the need to reevaluate a plan.

To learn more about essential estate planning for everyone, including the role of life insurance, join the Advanced Sales team for a webinar on October 24^th titled “Estate Planning … What Could Go Wrong?”  Click HERE to access the webinar registration link. We hope to see you there!

Estate Planning Tools

In the meantime, below are a few essential estate planning tools that will give your clients confidence in knowing they will take care of their loved ones when unthinkable events happen in life. Affluent individuals and those with more complicated estate planning needs commonly require more advanced estate planning strategies.

 

 

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Use This Estate Planning Assessment to Start the Conversation

To help your clients take inventory of their overall plan and address all pertinent issues, National Life has created an electronically fillable estate planning assessment, a tool designed to assist you in:

• assessing the ongoing relevance of the estate plan and identifying the gaps.
• facilitating discussions with financial and legal professionals.
• accomplishing what matters most: protecting loved ones.

 

Don’t Forget to Register!

Estate Planning… What Could Go Wrong?

Thursday, October 24
1:00 p.m. ET; 12:00 p.m. CT

Register now

 

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1. 2024 Wills and Estate Planning Study. https://www.caring.com/caregivers/estate-planning/wills-survey/