The Hazards of Forms in Estate Planning [Episode 107]

Attorney-CPA Joe Cordell and co-host Susan Arthur caution the hazards surrounding forms on this episode of ElderTalk with Joe Cordell. They discuss the importance of planning for your future, and not just after you die, as well as the consequences of choosing a more inexpensive and convenient method of estate planning, as opposed to meeting with an elder law attorney.

Joe navigates the ins and outs of a testamentary trust, a beneficiary deed, and a payable on death provision. Susan tells a cautionary story of someone who utilized a form for his estate planning, forgot purchased stocks, and it ended up costing his loved ones after his death.

Joe emphasizes making your trust a beneficiary, in order to move assets into the trusts. He describes what you, as the client, are entitled in your estate planning documents and how they meet your unique priorities. Joe also highlights the importance of having a springing Power of Attorney.