Ocean County Estate Planning Blog

There may come a time when you're unable to make important decisions about your health care. For instance, if you're incapacitated by illness or injury and can't communicate to medical staff, your wishes regarding health care may be ignored. That's where a power of attorney comes in. This is a person you appoint to speak on your behalf and ensure your desires regarding end-of-life care are honored. Very Well Health explains what to look for when choosing a power of attorney. 

First and foremost, the person should be responsible and trustworthy. You want to rest assured that he or she will be able and willing to carry out his duties when the time comes. The person should also share your values and beliefs, or at least be able to set aside differences of opinion to honor your wishes. Trust is a huge concern when making these decisions and you want to ensure that you trust your selection implicitly. 

One of the most valuable assets you have is likely a piece of property, such as your main residence, or a beach house you offer as a vacation rental.

When you think about estate planning, the transfer of real property may be uppermost in your mind. What is the best way to approach this? Here are two ideas you may wish to explore.

Perhaps the most important element of estate planning in Ocean County is actually choosing to do it. It is a decision that many American adults have yet to make (indeed, according to research information shared by the American Association of Retired Persons, 6 in 10 have no estate planning documents). Those who die without a will force their estates to become subject to intestate succession. This is a state-controlled process in which the dispersal of one's assets are regulated by the law (and not the wishes of their heirs). 

New Jersey's intestate succession regulations can be found in Section 3B.5 of the state's General Statutes. According to the law, one's surviving spouse would inherit the entire amount of their intestate estate if a decedent has no surviving descendants (or if their surviving descendants are also the direct descendants of the surviving spouse). If one or more of one's descendants are not those of the surviving spouse, or if the surviving spouse also has descendants that are not related to the decedent, then the surviving spouse is entitled to the first 25 percent of the estate's assets (not be less than $50,000 or greater than $200,000), plus 50 percent of the remaining amount of the estate. They would also be entitled to the first 25 percent if the decedent is survived by their parents (but no descendants). Their entitlement to the remaining amount of the estate would then increase to 75 percent. 

When some people picture the type of person who sets up an estate plan, they may envision someone who is wealthy and owns a considerable amount of property. To be sure, estate plans are especially important for people in this position, but even low-income individuals benefit from estate plans. By setting up a will or creating a trust, those with low incomes are able to not only protect what they have but make things easier for their loved ones down the road. Moreover, there are other aspects of estate planning, such as power of attorney, which can be extremely important regardless of how much money one makes or their net worth.

Some people assume that because they are facing financial challenges, setting up an estate plan is unimportant. Regrettably, this can complicate things for their family members when they pass away. Creating an estate plan can help you take control of your assets and how they are managed later on, and your loved ones may be very grateful that you took the time to take these matters into consideration beforehand.