The majority of Americans have not executed all of the proper estate planning documents, and this is a disturbing fact. But even if you do have a last will in place along with your advance health care directives there are other things to address.
One of them is the choice of someone to act as your representative in the event of your incapacitation or death. If you are using a last will the executor or executrix would be this representative.
The first thing to do once you have identified who you would like to see handling your affairs is to let your family members know about your choice. By so doing you will eliminate the possibility of disputes arising among members of the family later on.
You are then going to want to make sure that your representative has everything that he or she needs to go forward handling the business of the estate (or your own affairs in the event of your incapacitation). The most important thing that may come to mind is to discuss all the details of your financial holdings and your responsibilities to creditors.
You are going to have to share relevant access information with your representative, and this will include online accounts of course.
Another facet to consider is the nuts and bolts such as the physical location of keys to vehicles, storage units and/or real property. You are also going to want your representative to know how to contact your attorney, your accountant, and perhaps any real estate people that you may work with.
If you think it all through thoroughly and make sure that you have gone over everything with your representative while you connect this individual with your estate planning lawyer things should go smoothly when action becomes necessary.
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