Women Need to Plan For Their Future and Retirement
Facts - women live longer than men, a woman can expect to spend the last 10 years of her life alone, women divorced after 50 will not remarry, second marriages fail 60% of the time, women may take 10 years to regain her predivorce financial status, women care for their children but they will also be the caretakers for their parents, by 2010 it is estimated that women will control the majority of the wealth in the US. So no matter who makes the financial decisions for your family now - all women should prepare to be their own financial planners, wealth managers and decision makers towards the end of their lives.
Women should educate and surround themselves with family and advisors they trust and who can assist them to make the decisions that they will be faced with in the future. An estate planning and probate attorney is one of those advisors.
If you are not currently prepared to manage your wealth you need to begin educating yourself immediately. Make a list of your assets. Update it frequently. Do you have agreements in place to replace you if you own your own business? Does the business have the financial resources to continue if you become incapacitated, die or retire? Verify how the assets are titled so you don’t accidentally disinherit one of your children. Is the children’s college education paid for? Planned for? Did you know that a UGMA account is considered your asset if you are sued? And that your child is entitled to the proceeds when he or she turns 18 - BEFORE college? Did you know that the standard beneficiary designations on your retirement accounts and life insurance can cause the immediate income tax consequences if you die? I have had clients who still have their 1st spouse listed as beneficiary or only one child (out of several) named.
Is CPS really the best guardian for your children? By 2011 if the value of your estate, including life insurance proceeds exceeds $1,000,000 you may be subject to 50% estate tax.
Will you leave your assets to your children or grandchildren outright? Could they manage the windfall? Who will take care of your parents if you are gone? Who will take care of you, your children and your financial affairs if you are incapacitated? How will your children pay the taxes if you pass away? Will there be enough money for your small children and spouse if something happens to one of you? These are just several of the challenges our clients face.
As women we understand that you need to control your financial destiny and the challenges you face in doing that. Planning for and by women is significantly different than planning for men. Whether a woman is single, a committed partner, married, divorced or widowed, women need to prepare for the future. It is our firm’s mission to assist women with everything that matters to them including wills and trusts, retirement planning, disability planning, family law, guardian appointments, elder law and medicaid, probate and trust administration and most importantly - estate planning for their futures and the legacy they will leave to their children.