Estate planning can be complicated, filled with technical complexity and emotional stress. It’s no surprise that, according to a survey by Caring.com, 43%1 of Americans without an estate plan blame procrastination as the driving factor.
The good news is that getting started is easier than you think—and you and your family don’t need to go through the process alone.
The key is to engage a team of experts to guide you, answer your questions, and create a complete and tailored estate plan to protect your loved ones and shape your legacy.
Here’s what you need to know to surround yourself with the right estate planning team.
Start with the Heart
Your decision to embrace estate planning starts with your passion for protecting your family. That’s why it’s important to have a heart-to-heart conversation with everyone about your values and vision for the future.
Although the subject of death—and how your estate will be divided—can be sensitive, it’s necessary to ensure everyone understands your intentions.
Your financial advisor can help you facilitate those conversations—leveraging their experience to create a safe space to discuss each family member’s financial situation. Later, you can incorporate their input into your estate plan as you see fit.
If you do not have an advisor, we can connect you with one of the 6,000+ across our national network.
Trust the Experts
After your initial discussions, your advisor can help you align a team of professionals who can collaborate, share their knowledge, and develop an integrated estate plan.
Below are four key roles in an estate planning team—depending on your unique situation, you may need to bring in additional professionals.
1. Financial Advisor
Your financial advisor can sit at the center with you—and collaborate with qualified estate attorneys, accountants, and trust services professionals like National Advisors Trust to help you build a robust plan. They can also assist you in:
- Solidifying objectives for your estate plan and legacy
- Ensuring your retirement, investment, and insurance needs are covered
- Understanding and reviewing beneficiary designations
- Choosing suitable trusts and other solutions for your family’s needs
- Working with your planning team to ensure your wishes are fulfilled
Your advisor may also recommend adding your insurance agent or broker to the team, depending on your financial situation, insurance coverage, and estate plan.
2. Estate Planning Attorney
Your attorney is responsible for creating your planning documents—including your will, trusts, durable power of attorney, and advance healthcare directives—and ensuring they are valid and compliant with state laws. They can also explain the legal duties involved when assigning key roles such as the executor of your will, power of attorney, healthcare proxy, or trustee. Your attorney can also discuss federal and state laws and how your estate will be valued, taxed, and distributed.
3. Accountant
An essential part of estate planning is minimizing the tax burden for your loved ones when they inherit your estate. Your accountant will provide expertise, work with your financial advisor and attorney, and ensure the structure of trusts and other plan provisions are designed to reduce the impact of taxes and safeguard your wealth.
4. Trustee
Trusts should be considered an essential component of your estate plan. They help provide a spectrum of benefits, including directing the distribution of your assets, mitigating taxes, preserving your family’s privacy, and avoiding a costly and time-consuming probate process.
If trusts are part of your plan, you will need to select a Trustee. Your trustee is legally obligated to protect and manage your trust assets on behalf of your heirs. Their duties are complex, including:
- Administrating and transferring assets according to the trust agreement
- Making discretionary and non-discretionary distributions
- Collecting and distributing income or life insurance
- Keeping accurate records, filing tax returns, and other reporting
Acting as a trustee requires a significant time commitment, a strong understanding of trust accounting, and ongoing fiduciary and administrative duties. Estate plans and trusts may start with the heart, but to truly protect loved ones, we advise managing them with the head. That means enlisting an experienced professional trust company such as National Advisors Trust to be part of the team rather than a friend or family member.
Build Your Best Team
Behind every successful estate and trust plan is an experienced and knowledgeable team.
As the nation’s premier independent trust company, we’re focused on making it easy for advisors and families to take the necessary steps to enrich future generations.
Speak with your financial advisor today about putting a team in place to help you create a meaningful legacy for you and your family. If you need help finding an advisor, we can recommend one from our comprehensive national network.
1 https://www.caring.com/caregivers/estate-planning/wills-survey/
