5 Estate-Planning Tips for Child-Free Couples
Not everyone wants kids. Some couples decide it would be better to live together and travel or engage in other activities rather than having to care for a baby. The reason can be either a financial one or just plain insecurity about their parenting skills. Some don’t want them, without any particular reason behind it.
Therefore, some people may think that estate planning is unnecessary, but this is wrong. Everyone needs estate planning. To help you out with it, here are five tips for estate-planning if you’re not willing to have kids.
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Plan for Your Pets
If you don’t want to have children, perhaps you have a pet that’s very dear to you, and you want to ensure the best conditions for it. Considering how many animals are getting euthanasia due to lack of proper planning from their owners, you don’t want it to end in such a heartbreaking way.
One thing that you can do is put some of your money into a trust that is meant to care for animals. Another option is having someone care for your little furry friend. Just make sure the person is trustworthy and has what it takes to do it – and that they want to take care of it, of course.
photo/ StockSnap
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Get Power of Attorney
Since you won’t have a child, there’s always the concern of who will take care of you once you turn old. Well, you can use a power of attorney to get someone to do it.
Power of attorney, or POA for short, is a document through which a person will be designated to deal with your investments, bills, and many other similar things. The person has to be someone that you can trust.
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Make Sure Beneficiaries Are Up to Date
You need to name beneficiaries and keep designations up-to-date correctly. You need to know that when you die, a beneficiary designation will be the one dealing with the proceeds in case you have life insurance policies or retirement accounts. So, make sure you don’t make the mistake of not keeping the designations current.
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Use a Will or a Revocable Living Trust
As a couple with no children, you and your spouse will not have an heir to inherit your house or other types of wealth. So, you either need a trust or a will. Your wealth can be directed to your spouse if you die without a will. But if none of you has a will and don’t make a trust either, the state will be the one to decide which member of your family will benefit from your wealth.
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Give Money to Charity
A nice thing to do is talk to an estate planning attorney, so they can set things up for you to donate your wealth to charity. This way, after your death, your money can go to the charity you are passionate about – thus, you can help someone in need.
Final Thoughts
Even couples with no children need estate planning, so make sure to follow these tips to prepare for when your wealth has to be given to someone else. If you need more estate planning tips, you can contact the lawyers from Beller & Bustamante, P.L., and get the help that you need.
Author: Tech Social
