When you are looking to plan your estate, one of the most critical factors to take into consideration is how well your assets are protected. If you do not, it could wind up costing you or your loved ones a substantial amount of money, with your heirs losing their inheritances in the process. But what exactly is asset protection, and why is it so important to estate planning considerations?
What is Asset Protection?
In the context of estate planning, asset protection is when you use certain estate documents to protect your money or property from being taken by creditors, tax collectors, or anyone else who might try to take money from your estate. Under normal circumstances, governments and businesses can try to satisfy any outstanding debts by suing your estate. However, certain methods of asset protection can help to avoid this by limiting the ability of others to access your assets through the courts.
How Can You Protect Your Assets?
There are a few ways that you can potentially protect your assets from creditors and taxes. One of the most common ways could involve the use of a trust, which can shield certain assets held within the trust from certain types of taxation or from creditors who might try to use the assets in your estate to pay off what you owe. Certain testamentary or investment instruments can also be used as methods of asset protection in your estate plan.
What Happens if You Do Not Protect Your Assets?
If you fail to take advantage of certain methods of tax planning, you may find that much of your estate will be taken by tax and debt collectors who only care about ensuring they get what you owe them. This can not only result in costly legal bills, it can also deprive your estate of the money and property that should rightly go to your heirs. This could leave your loved ones receiving far less than they might have anticipated before the probate process began.
What Should You Do?
In order to ensure your assets are appropriately protected, you should make sure to speak to a lawyer with experience handling estate planning issues. They can help you determine what works best for you and your family, so your needs are taken care of when you are no longer there to care for your loved ones. The sooner you contact us, the sooner we can get to work on your case.
If you are looking to plan your estate, or have any other needs related to probate, estate administration, or elder law, you should contact Leventhal Elias Law, PLLC. She can assist you with every aspect of New York estate and elder law, allowing you to focus on what really matters. For a consultation, contact her at her Staten Island office at 718-448-6655, or email her at EliasEsq@outlook.com.
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