There’s a National Holiday for It

Raise your hand if you have your party hat on for National Estate Planning Awareness Week, which kicked off yesterday! Just me? Not surprising. Yes, National Estate Planning Awareness Week is an actual thing. Adopted by the House of Representatives in September 2008, the government wants to make sure that all citizens know the importance of having an estate plan.

The House Resolution states that an estimated 120,000,000 Americans do not have up-to-date estate plans. That is nearly half of the U.S. population! [Gasp!] So, what makes estate planning so important (in case you haven’t been listening to me)? According to the Resolution, estate plans:

-Protect you and your family in the event of sickness, accidents, or death;

-Preserve your hard-earned assets for the benefit of your family, heirs, and charities;

-Encourage timely decisions about how to title assets, designate beneficiaries, and coordinate pre-death transfers.

-Ensure your assets are distributed to your intended beneficiaries and avoid probate;

-Can prevent family members and beneficiaries from enduring complex legal and administrative processes, which involve significant time, confusion, and often animosity.

The best way to celebrate National Estate Planning Awareness Week is to pay me a visit! You can call (248) 477-6300 to schedule an initial consultation. (I may still be wearing my party hat.) The second-best way is to educate yourself, your family, and your friends, about why estate planning is important enough to warrant a national awareness week.