What would happen to your loved ones if you passed away within the next week?
Don’t know? That’s okay. We understand that it’s hard imagining what your family would do without you.
Thankfully, with estate planning, you can ensure that your family’s future is secure in case something happens to you. You can rest easy knowing the ones who mean the most to you will be protected.
Contact Stafford Law Firm to talk with a Bellaire estate planning attorney. Start planning for your future today.
Only 12 miles away from Houston, Bellaire, TX, is home to 16,983 Texans. Bellaire has a homeownership rate of 88.8% and a median household income of $211,202. Named the “City of Homes,” Bellaire is a beautiful residential area that has much to offer to its locals.
The median value of owner-occupied housing units from 2017 to 2021 was $857,900, with an average of 2.77 persons per household.
These numbers indicate that Bellaire is a thriving community, and its residents have assets worth protecting. If you’re looking to protect your family, you need a reliable estate planning attorney on your side
Don’t settle on just anyone. Instead, rely on the TX estate planning lawyers from Stafford Law Firm.
Estate planning is an ongoing process that sets your family up for success when you’re no longer around. It’s as unique as you are and can include various tools.
Because of that, our team offers comprehensive estate planning services so you can hand-select the tools that make sense for your family.
Here are just a few ways we can help you.
Wills are a great starting point for your estate plans. In your will, you can designate guardians for minor children, select beneficiaries for your assets, and even dictate your wishes for burial arrangements.
Keep in mind, however, that wills do not provide asset protection, which means they’ll need to be used in conjunction with other estate planning tools to cover all the bases.
Trusts are fiduciary arrangements that allow a third party (trustee) to hold assets on behalf of a beneficiary. When you set up a trust, the trust becomes the owner of those assets and the trustee, the manager, until you pass away or become incapacitated.
Creating a trust allows you to protect those assets from probate and have more autonomy over how and when they’re distributed.
Part of estate planning is planning for the unexpected, like if you become badly injured or sick. In situations like these, your loved ones and doctors will need guidance on what healthcare treatments you want, what life-saving measures you would or wouldn’t prefer, and other decisions.
These aren’t decisions you want your family to have to second-guess about. And when you can’t speak for yourself, healthcare directives allow you to outline your wishes beforehand.
Power of attorney documents allow a third party (agent) to act on your behalf in your absence. If you were temporarily disabled, incapacitated, or taking an extended trip, these documents allow that third party to step in and make important legal, financial, or healthcare decisions for you.
Without these documents, the court could decide who should make these decisions and, depending on the circumstances, end up stripping you of your rights altogether.
Probate is the process of rounding up your final affairs in court. This includes collecting, managing, and distributing your estate. It can be costly and time-consuming, dragging your loved ones back and forth to court to determine what should happen with your estate.
With proper planning, it might be avoided. However, when necessary, surviving loved ones can count on an experienced probate attorney to walk them through the probate and estate administration process.
Planning your estate is an emotional process. We never want to consider what life would be like without us around. But at Stafford Law Firm, our attorneys can help you plan your estate, protect your assets, and give you peace of mind for the unexpected.
Our other legal services include:
Are you ready to take the next step in planning your estate?
Contact an experienced estate planning attorney at our law office to schedule a complimentary estate planning consultation.
We all have assets and, more importantly, a family that we want to take care of. Even though death can be unpleasant to think about, it’s important to prepare for when you’re gone to protect your loved ones.
At Stafford Law Firm, we understand how important protecting your family and assets is to you. We want to help you create a comprehensive estate plan that lasts for years to come. Take the first step in the estate planning process by contacting an estate planning lawyer from Stafford Law Firm.
Call us today to schedule a consultation. Our office is located at 9601 Katy Fwy Suite 470, Houston, TX 77024.
We are here to protect you, your family, and your business. Schedule a free consultation to discuss the best way to protect your future.
While a will and a trust seem like similar estate planning documents, they serve different purposes. Without a will, your assets may not be distributed how you’d like them to be. A trust is a great tool for avoiding probate, so it’s beneficial to have both a will and a trust.
Probate is the process of carrying out your will and handling your estate once you pass away. An executor fulfills this process, and some of their duties include appraising your property, paying off your debts, and distributing your assets to beneficiaries. Probate can be overwhelming and time-consuming. Thankfully, a probate lawyer can help make it a lot more simple.
An executor of an estate is responsible for carrying out a will during the probate process. You can appoint an executor in your will. If you do not name an executor before you pass away, the state will choose an executor.
If you pass away without a will, the courts will decide what to do with your assets. This is not always the best option since you get no say in what happens to your belongings. For example, something special that you wanted to give to a particular person could be given to someone else.
It’s best practice to create a will with an estate planning attorney so that your assets go to the correct people once you’re gone.
If you have assets and a family you wish to protect, then you should create an estate plan. Many people put off estate planning for a variety of reasons. However, it’s essential that you create one before it’s too late. Illness or death is unpredictable, which is why you need a comprehensive estate plan.
Estate planning is more than just a will. It includes important legal documents like trusts, beneficiary designations, power of attorneys, and any instructions once you die or if you become incapacitated. An estate plan is a living document: you should update it as your needs change.
