You can start planning for your future today by contacting our law office. Our estate planning lawyers serving Long Island, NY have years of experience working with Long Island residents and are extremely familiar with the local laws and estate issues that apply. So when you come to us, you can be confident that we would have an idea about your estate situation or needs and how best to help you address them.
You may need an estate planning lawyer to help you establish a will and trust to facilitate your asset transfer when you pass on. You may also need help addressing your estate tax concerns, incapacity or making updates to your estate documents.
Whatever your needs are, our estate planning lawyers are highly knowledgeable and competent to map out a plan that protects your best interests.
If you are looking to hire an estate planning lawyer in Long Island, kindly contact us office today.
Things to know about estate planning in Long Island
What documents do I need to include in my estate plan in Long Island?
There are 5 essential documents an estate planning lawyer would advise to include in your plan. These documents include:
- Last will and testament
- Durable power of attorney
- Healthcare surrogate
- Living trust
- Living will
Our estate planning lawyers will always create your estate documents in a way that offers you the most benefits.
While do I have to hire an estate planning attorney in Long Island?
Each estate planning document have their legal requirements for validity. For example, you cannot appoint a non-NY resident as your executor or attorney-in-fact. And there are family members not allowed to take up some of these positions. A local attorney would know the laws and ensure your documents are properly established.
In addition, an estate planning attorney near you in Long Island would have garnered experience on typical issues clients face in Long Island and so would help you avoid them.
What are the things that make up a person’s estate?
A person’s estate is the sum total of all they own, including assets (such as buildings,bank accounts, jewelry, and stock) and liabilities (such as debts and mortgages). People wrongly associate the word estate with the wealthy but the truth is almost everyone has an estate. That car, musical instrument, bank account, 401(k), life insurance policy, business, home, or bike is an item that makes up your estate.
What assets can you pass with your will in Long Island, NY?
Only assets held in your name only can go in your will. These assets are called probate assets.
Your real property jointly owned with your spouse, properties titled in a trust, life insurance proceeds and transfer-on-death accounts (all of these already have beneficiaries named in the documents) cannot go in a will because they already have their own designated beneficiaries.
Knowing when to use a trust or a will for asset transfer
The choice of using a will, trust, or both documents in your estate plan will depend on the kind and value of estate you own. If your estate is very small and simple, then a will is optimum. If the sum total of your taxable estate falls below $30,000 in Long Island, then there will be no probate. Hence, there’s no need to use a trust.
But in cases where you have a large estate, it’s best to use only a living trust or in combination with a will to avoid the complexities of probate. Using a trust will typically offer tax savings (for large taxable estates), probate avoidance, and ease of asset transfer. A trust will therefore be unnecessary if these things will not be a problem for your estate.
What happens if I don’t have an estate plan in Long Island, NY?
If you die without having any form of asset transfer plan in place (will or trust), your estate is declared an intestate estate. In intestacy, your wishes are not known, so the court will decide who has a share. By default, in Long Island and throughout New York, your spouse will receive the first $50,000 and half of your estate while your children receive the rest.
How do I get in touch with the best estate planning lawyers in Long Island NYC?
To get the best of estate planning in Long Island, contact our law office today. Let us give you the peace of mind that comes with knowing your wishes will be known and honored when anything happens to you.
Call us today.