A Wealth Distribution Strategy in Your Estate Planning in Kansas
Kansas Estate Planning Attorney Suggests Going Beyond the Basics and Diving Deep Into Wealth Distribution Strategy in Your Estate Planning
Whether you have made a full or partial estate plan or you are just getting started on making an estate plan, it is critical that you understand that much of the thinking that goes into creating an effective estate plan takes place outside of your attorney’s office. Your estate planning attorney is the person who will guide you in translating your goals, strategies, and plans into the estate planning documents that will ensure that your wishes get carried out both during your lifetime and after you pass away. However, you play a vital role in deciding what content each of those documents contain.
Most people hope that the wealth and resources that they have worked hard to acquire will not only improve the lives of their family members but also that that wealth will last a while and perhaps even benefit future generations of family in addition to those who will inherit it directly. Additionally, despite having heard (as all of us have) stories of how inheritance and wealth transfer have torn families apart and fueled animosity between family members, you may hope for a better outcome for your family. While there’s no guarantee that using the strategy discussed below will bring about those two things for your heirs, it can significantly improve the likelihood that one or both of those things will happen.
You can begin to establish a foundation for a positive, long-term benefit from your estate by thinking deeply about how you will divide your estate. There are three primary ways that estate plans can set forth the division of an estate – equitable division, equal division, and fair division. These may sound like they would produce the same result, but they are different, and each provides a different result, so it is essential to choose your strategy or strategies wisely.
Some parents feel obligated to divide the estate equally despite feeling torn inside because they are well aware of just how different each of their children is as far as potential for making wise decisions, the potential for development, and the amount of financial assistance that they have provided for them during their lifetime. If you just found yourself nodding your head, it’s time for you to breathe a sigh of relief. You do not have to choose only one of these ways to divide your estate. You can split a portion of your estate in each of the three ways to accomplish a blend of the types of distributions.
Now that you know why it is essential to think deeply about how you will distribute your wealth through your estate plan, it’s time to read our next article, which lays out a strategy for doing just that. If you have estate planning questions, please call the law office of J. Joseph Weber, P.A. today for an initial consultation. Our location in Wichita is open weekdays, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. We sometimes offer weekend or evening hours by appointment, and the opportunity to connect with us online through our website.