I have always said that Estate Planning is so much more than the creation of documents. Knowing what your assets are is part of Estate Planning. If you don’t know what assets you have, how are you going to put a proper Estate Plan in place that meets your wishes?
This is the main reason why part of my Welcome to the Firm Package that I mail to Clients prior to their Estate Planning meeting includes homework. That homework is to go find assets and tell me what they are, how they are owned, who the beneficiary is and what the value is.
And, by the way, this process works. Today I met with a Client for our Mini-Summary review. He told me that during his move from another State to North Carolina he got very busy and lost track of some of his assets. He had discovered that he had a $20,000 account in his previous home state. He had forgotten about it and only found it due to our urging him to go find his assets.
I encourage you to locate all your assets, keep a detailed list of where they are each held, the account numbers and any other information that will adequately reference the asset.
If you need assistance in putting together your Estate Plan or need help putting together your asset spreadsheet, we’d love to help you. Just call our Charlotte, Estate Planning Firm at (704) 843-1446 or email Sabrina Winters, Esq. at swinters@sabrinawinterslaw.com.