DAY THREE: LIFE AND ESTATE PLANNING
For the third day of our "7 Days to a Better Financial You" campaign, we’re focusing on the importance of the GLBT community putting in place a proper life and estate plan in the event of death or disability.
To that end, today we’re releasing a new guide from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation called "Life and Estate Planning for GLBT Americans." The 12-chapter guide was created to serve as a basic guide to protecting the financial assets of GLBT families and covers personal planning; the basics of the estate plan; lifetime needs; your will; choosing your personal representative and trustee; your taxes; your business; your insurance; how to plan for passing retirement benefits; any gifts; and charitable giving.
Timothy Mahoney, HRC’s director of estate planning, considers laying out a sound plan to determine one’s financial legacy to be an essential responsibility for any GBLT individual, regardless of age or health:
"Whether you are 25 or 75, single or in a relationship, planning now can protect you and your loved ones and ensure your wishes and intents are followed. All of us need to think about our future expectations and consider what we would want should death or disability interrupt or stand in the way of our expectations. Life and estate planning are ways of thinking seriously about the future and making smart choices that meet our needs. You do not need to have a large income or to amass great personal wealth; if you care about your partner, or are concerned about where your hard-earned savings may someday flow, then you should understand some of the basis" principles of planning."
The introduction of "Life and Estate Planning for GLBT Americans" (.pdf) also gives some strong opening advice on the necessity of planning ahead to make sure one’s final assets make the maximum impact in they way that they see fit – and not according to the government’s standard methods:
When it comes to life and estate planning, GLBT Americans face a greater challenge. By failing to make informed choices, the legal system instead will choose for us. The law will always intervene if we do not plan for ourselves, and the law is written primarily and almost exclusively for non-gay, married couples and traditional families. These choices, if made under existing state law, generally do not reflect the wishes of most people. We will continue instead to see our relationships dishonored, our needs unstated, our desires unmet and our precious savings dedicated to causes we do not support or to federal and state taxes that might well be avoided.
Get hip today to what you need to know about putting in place your own estate plan for the future by downloading a printer-friendly version of the Life and Estate Planning for GLBT Americans" (.pdf).
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