Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Just a suggestion, but check with your bank and simply fill out a beneficiary form or Transfer/Payable on Death(TOD/POD) to your daughter. Same for your life insurance policy if it has a beneficiary benefit to it.
And, if NJ allows, put your daughter as the TOD/POD on the mortgage title-deed.
Having just a will may still mean putting your daughter thru probate for the condo and your accounts.
Thanks, good suggestion.
She is the beneficiary on the life insurance policy (it came from work--when I retired, I had the option to continue the life insurance benefit. I pay tax on the premium paid by my former employer) and she is the beneficiary on the $32K death benefit that comes from my pension.
The secondary beneficiary on both of those policies is my 90-year-old mother, lol.
I don't want to scare anybody, but we're all nearing an age when "we won't be here any longer". If you care about your spouse, kids, and grandkids, talk to an attorney and get your affairs in order.
Update the beneficiaries on any accounts that have them.
A will or a trust ensures your wishes are carried out "after you're not here any longer" (hopefully, if it's written correctly). It wouldn't hurt to consolidate any accounts you have at different institutions, to just one.
While were taking about consolidating, you probably don't need check registers or electric bills from 20 years ago. When my father died we shredded boxes and boxes of old paperwork, that was of no use to anybody.
And my final bit of advice is, if you have a favorite momento that you want a child or grandchild to have, GIVE IT TO THEM WHILE YOU'RE STILL L ALIVE. It ensures they get it, and the happiness it brings both of you will last forever.
I don't.
If I care about my spouse, kids, grandkids? I don't have any of those.
I'd like to find a worthy person to leave my estate (such as it would be) to. A hardworking person who has had it rough, but is managing well enough, but could use a leg up to do better in life. I don't know anyone like that.
If I care about my spouse, kids, grandkids? I don't have any of those.
I'd like to find a worthy person to leave my estate (such as it would be) to. A hardworking person who has had it rough, but is managing well enough, but could use a leg up to do better in life. I don't know anyone like that.
That's a nice idea. I hope that right person crosses your path.
I have no spouse, only one daughter, and she will not be having children. But I put myself into debt (now paid off) to give her a college education, which neither of her parents had. I won't feel terrible if I don't have a whole lot to leave her, because she now has the means to find her own way.
My mother had me as her POD on her checking account. When she died I just went to the bank with her death certificate and my identification and they are sending me a check. She had sold her house a few months prior and the only asset she had besides the funds in the bank was the furnishings in her apartment and her 2002 Chrysler Concord. My car lease is up the end of this month so I'm going to drive the Chrysler for a few years. It only had 68K miles on it and I had everything looked at. I had to go to the DMV with her death certificate and the title and that was easy peasy also.
After that I am going to set my sister up as my POD but I'm going to get a will online for any other assets I have, which is basically just my house. I have one grandchild who is 10 1/2 and I want to see about starting a college fund for her.
I have a living Trust, it was a lot of work to complete. I think a lot of people who start to get one never complete it.
The hard part for us was putting everything in the trust. Lots of paper work that had to be notarized. We were more worried about becoming incapacitated and who would manage our finances and assets.
The hard part for us was putting everything in the trust. Lots of paper work that had to be notarized. We were more worried about becoming incapacitated and who would manage our finances and assets.
But, at least you got it done, right?
Now, imagine how hard it would be on surviving family members having to deal with your estate and grieve at the same time if you didn't have your affairs in order.
No way would I put my kids and extended family thru the mess/cost/time of probate, court hearings, attorneys, etc.
It'll be hard enough with all of the right documents in place.
The hard part for us was putting everything in the trust. Lots of paper work that had to be notarized. We were more worried about becoming incapacitated and who would manage our finances and assets.
Mine was not difficult at all. The attorney drafted all the documents, I read through them, sent back my changes, they made those changes and sent them back to me. I approvied them and we set a date to sign them at her office with her office staff notary doing the notarization and she and another staff person as witnesses.
Afterwards, all I had to do was file the Quitclaim Deed (which the attorney prepared and it took me all of 15 minutes which includes walking over to the office and back plus the 5 minutes to actually do the transaction. Change the beneficiaries on my 401(k) via the investment company portal, change the work stuff beneficiaries, one letter to the mortgage company, one email to the other investment guy and one email to my insurance agent and it was done. What took the most time was thinking about how I wanted to split everything up since I have two very specific monetary gifts I want to make. And the attorney did all the documents (will, POA, HC, trust) for one price.
The hard part for us was putting everything in the trust. Lots of paper work that had to be notarized. We were more worried about becoming incapacitated and who would manage our finances and assets.
Everything? The only thing we put in our trust is our properties, (home and rentals). What else did you put in your trust?
Any accounts that had beneficiaries, we just listed our kids as first beneficiary, and the trust as second.
What personal items are important to me, cars and firearms. What have I given my kids and grandkids while I'm still alive, cars and firearms.
When I die the only thing left will be properties and investment accounts.
Mine was not difficult at all. The attorney drafted all the documents, I read through them, sent back my changes, they made those changes and sent them back to me. I approvied them and we set a date to sign them at her office with her office staff notary doing the notarization and she and another staff person as witnesses.
Afterwards, all I had to do was file the Quitclaim Deed (which the attorney prepared and it took me all of 15 minutes which includes walking over to the office and back plus the 5 minutes to actually do the transaction. Change the beneficiaries on my 401(k) via the investment company portal, change the work stuff beneficiaries, one letter to the mortgage company, one email to the other investment guy and one email to my insurance agent and it was done. What took the most time was thinking about how I wanted to split everything up since I have two very specific monetary gifts I want to make. And the attorney did all the documents (will, POA, HC, trust) for one price.
Hope you didn't make the trust a beneficiary.
Our trust has several charitable orgs as beneficiaries and when there is a mixture of people and organizations the tax implications get complicated. We wanted to shield our heirs from tax problems as best we could so constructed the trust accordingly. So it got a little complex and made more work for us. But it's all done now.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
