How Do We Help You With Estate Planning?
No matter your age, health, or perceived wealth, it is important for all adults to have carefully drafted estate and incapacity planning documents. These documents define your estate plan and ensure that your loved ones have the proper information and legal authority to handle your affairs and make decisions for you upon your death or incapacity.
Estate planning at Frankel Estate Planning & Elder Law, LLC is centered around helping clients keep control over important decisions, protect themselves and their loved ones, and provide peace of mind for their beneficiaries.
The most important parts of an estate plan often include an Advance Directive for Health Care, a Durable Financial Power of Attorney, a Health Care Proxy, a Last Will and Testament, and, in many cases, a Trust.
The Advance Directive for Health Care and Durable Financial Power of Attorney are incapacity planning documents. They define who will make key decisions for you if you are unable to manage your own financial or health affairs. It is essential that you choose a trustworthy agent to act on your behalf.
A Power of Attorney grants a trusted person, known as your agent, the authority to handle your financial affairs. These affairs can include real property transactions, everyday banking, operating your business, paying bills, buying and selling property, and other financial or legal matters. What your agent can do depends on your specific situation and the terms of your power of attorney.
One important thing to remember is that a Power of Attorney is an incredibly powerful document. Once it is effective, your agent has the authority described in the document. For that reason, your agent should be trustworthy, financially responsible, and organized.
A Health Care Proxy functions much like a power of attorney, but it applies to health care decisions. It appoints a health care agent who may make medical decisions for you if you are unable to make or communicate those decisions yourself. This may include decisions involving medical treatment, artificial respiration, hydration, tube feeding, and other procedures.
A Will states who is in charge of your estate, who will serve in certain roles, and how your property is to be distributed after your death. A Will can also name guardians for minor children and make clear who should receive your assets.
However, a Will is not always the best or only planning tool. In many situations, a Trust may provide additional benefits. A Trust can help avoid probate, provide privacy, create smoother administration after death, protect beneficiaries who may not be ready to receive assets outright, and allow you to place rules around how and when assets are distributed. Trusts can also be especially helpful for blended families, minor children, beneficiaries with disabilities, creditor concerns, second marriages, real estate, and long-term care planning.
The right estate plan depends on your goals, your family, your assets, and the type of protection you want to provide. For some clients, a Will-based plan may be appropriate. For others, a Trust-based plan may offer greater control, flexibility, and peace of mind.
Without proper planning, default intestacy provisions may take over. This means that Pennsylvania law will determine who receives your property and who has priority to administer your estate, regardless of what your preferences may have been. This can sometimes result in family disputes, unnecessary court involvement, delays, or unintended consequences.
If you have done planning in the past, it is also crucial to periodically revisit your documents. Laws, family dynamics, health situations, assets, and planning goals can change over time. Our firm can help review and update your planning documents so that you are confident your plan still works for you and your family.
We can help you create an estate plan that protects you, protects your loved ones, and ensures your property is distributed according to your wishes.
Please contact us to learn more about the specific Estate Planning services we offer by calling
(610) 897-8994.
