It’s time to have an honest conversation about money.
He drafts a prenup with his new wife and makes provisions for his daughter.
A lawyer is paid to draft a complicated will and trust for the daughter, with lifetime support promised to the wife.
The wife brings in untrained church members to care for them.
The wife falls and suffers a serious head injury. Caregivers mismanage the father’s medications, and both deteriorate rapidly.
The wife begins liquidating her husband’s investments and draining his bank accounts.
The wife accuses the daughter of financial abuse and puts the husband into guardianship.
He drafts a prenup with his new wife and makes provisions for his daughter.
A lawyer is paid to draft a complicated will and trust for the daughter, with lifetime support promised to the wife.
The wife brings in untrained church members to care for them.
The wife falls and suffers a serious head injury. Caregivers mismanage the father’s medications, and both deteriorate rapidly.
The wife begins liquidating her husband’s investments and draining his bank accounts.
The wife accuses the daughter of financial abuse and puts the husband into guardianship.
What happened to them can happen to anyone
If you do not name a beneficiary for your bank account, the funds become part of your legal estate after you die and must go through probate. Your beneficiaries will have to fight for them in court, and taxes will be higher.
If you are incapacitated during your lifetime, or there is real or orchestrated family conflict, a court-appointed guardian can take over not only your finances but your health care, make all decisions for you, and charge you or your estate for the expense of managing your affairs.
Your bank accounts or retirement accounts could end up in the State Comptroller’s pocket, leaving family or friends without funds for your final expenses and funeral. New York currently holds about 18 billion dollars in unclaimed funds.
It’s like the roach motel. Once you get in, it’s virtually impossible to get out. All or most of your assets will likely go toward administering your estate — selling your house, car and possessions to cover legal and management costs.
You can have a plan, think you have things completely under control with a will, a trust and a financial planner — but when the time comes to implement the plan you may discover it is inadequate, fails to protect you or your beneficiaries in fundamental ways, or fails to benefit those you have identified as your successors.