Houston Estate Planning Attorney

It’s easy to find free estate planning guides online these days. Are you tempted to save the time and money of hiring an estate planning lawyer? Print eight or ten free forms off a website, and you can handle your estate planning matters independently. Right?

Wrong. Trying to handle the legal complexities involved in estate planning without legal aid can be disastrous. You might lose assets in the probate process, drain savings, and pay more estate or inheritance taxes than you should. Your DIY will might even be invalid when you pass on! DIY estate planning is usually a losing proposition.

A Houston estate planning attorney will review your estate and goals and recommend a legally sound estate plan that’s best for you.

Why You Need a Houston Estate Planning Attorney

A one-size-fits-all approach to Texas estate planning doesn’t usually work out well. Every family and estate is unique. For example, estate planning for young families may look much different than that of a retired couple.

Additionally, a situation with some or all of these factors requires a customized estate plan:

• Divorce

• Minor children or no children

• Significant assets

• A family company or business

• Remarriage

• High level of charitable giving

• Dependents who are disabled

Estate Planning Services

• Wills — A will is among the most crucial estate planning documents in your strategy. In your will we create, you can name your beneficiaries, name a guardian for your minor children, prevent certain people from getting assets, and name an executor for the estate.

• Trusts — If you want to employ asset protection strategies that help your heirs avoid probate, our estate planning attorneys can set up a trust for you.

• Power of attorney — Naming someone to act for you in financial, healthcare, and legal matters will safeguard your assets in a worst-case scenario. The power of attorney designee can make your healthcare decisions, pay your debts and bills, sell real estate, and file tax returns.

• Business succession planning — If you own a company, our business attorneys can make a succession plan that details how company ownership and management will be handled. The plan also can solve business liquidity problems and treat all beneficiaries fairly.

• Elder law — Help you plan for possible long-term care expenses, including shielding assets from paying for nursing home care.

• Probate lawyer — If you find yourself facing probate court, you could be facing lengthy court proceedings. Estate attorneys experienced in probate law and litigation can ensure the process is as smooth as possible.

What Can Happen Without a Houston Estate Planning Lawyer?

You can learn online how to do many things these days. From changing a tire to filing your taxes, there are many things we do ourselves at home. But most of us shouldn’t handle our estate planning by ourselves.

Here are some possible negative outcomes to DIY estate planning:

• Costly mistakes – While it’s possible to do wills, trusts, and powers of attorney yourself, all it takes is one small mistake. Then you have lost time, money, and stress to deal with as well as estate planning.

• Missing health and medical care considerations – Another reason to use an estate planning lawyer is this process isn’t just about who gets your ‘stuff’ when you die. A significant component of a solid estate plan is what happens if you become mentally or physically unable to care for yourself or make decisions.

• Legal disputes – Not using an attorney to complete a will, trust, or power of attorney can mean something on the critical legal documents was done wrong. Imagine if your DIY will isn’t legally valid when you pass away! Your heirs might lose their inheritances, and all your hard work building a legacy for them was for nothing.

Your estate planning lawyer has a deep understanding of Texas estate law and experience in many complex legal subjects that affect seniors:

• Transferring and preserving assets when a spouse goes into a nursing home

• Medicaid planning

• Medicare appeals and claims

• Probate court

• Taxes and financial planning when you die

• Managing the estates and trusts

• Nursing home issues

• Long-term care planning

Imagine trying to handle these complicated elder law issues on your own!

Contact Our Houston Estate Planning Attorneys Now

If you need estate planning advice, you must talk to an attorney as soon as possible. The Houston estate planning attorneys at The Titus Law Firm will help devise a legal strategy to protect your assets, reduce taxes, and much more. Please contact us today.