Estate/Will Planning

@treehouse5437 Are you working with an estate planning attorney? Do you have pets/animals? Have you thought about who will care for your pets if you are unable or have died? I worked with my estate planning attorney to put instructions in my will for who will care for my pets and I included money for the person who will care for them. I did a huge revision of my will and estate planning after my cancer diagnosis too.

Hi,
My husband recently died in July. We had pre-planned our will years ago and I'm glad that we did. We only wanted cremation and that cost $4000 for the both of us 15 years ago! We didn't plan a funeral simply because everyone we knew and all our family members who cared at all are all dead. So, who would come? (I'm 78 and my husband was 83 when he died.) One nice thing that the funeral home told us bout was that since my husband was in the military, we both get our ashes placed in the military cemetery with a plaque for free! Also be sure and arrange that quite a few death certificates are included in the cost of your will. They can be quite expensive if you have to purchase them separately and you never know who will want a copy. Try and find a funeral home that is privately owned. My friend dealt with a large corporation funeral home. She paid for everything up front. A few years later, they wanted another $6000 from her for the same service!

It's good to plan ahead but say a prayer that you won't need any of this for many years! I'll say a prayer for you also.
PML

Thank you! 😊

Great information, thank you! My Dad was in the military- Air Force (Korean War) but it wasn't his career. The National Cemeteries do a wonderful job. 😊

I'm glad I could be of some help! Good for your father! Defending America in the Korean War! My father was in the Korean War also in the Navy. He was also in the Navy in WWII. My husband was in Viet Nam. I'm glad they were all there to keep America free. It's so nice that the National Cemeteries remember and honor them.
PML

How nice of you to care so much for your pets! I think that is wonderful! My husband and I didn't have pets as we aged because we had no one to take care of them when we died. Sure, one of us may be left; and I was, but then what happens to the pet when I die? We loved pets and had our kitty, Snoopy who died in 2001. We missed him and still talked about him 20 years later! However, we made pets of all the neighbors animals and the squirrels, the blue jay and the crows. So we managed. I admire your plans for your pets.
PML

Get a trust and put everything in it except your retirement plan. That includes your home, cars, investments, misc items, and have it done by a lawyer. Get a durable and medical power of attorney , a living will and a pour over will. You will be the trustee and you have to name a successor trustee to serve when you are no longer able to serve. The successor trustee can be a trusted, honest, wise relative, or a commercial trust company. Think about things that you have but don’t use nor need and consider giving stuff away to people who can use it. Once you have made arrangements you may feel that a burden has been lifted. I understand and I am still making arrangements although most things have now been decided. I am Gleason 9 CR, aggressive, incurable, locally advanced and 40 months since diagnosis. Had surgery and 12 months of ADT and Erleada. 78 years old. Good luck to you and all in our support group.

@pml Thank you. I have seen too many pets end up in animal shelters because their people did not make plans for them ahead of time. That makes me so very sad so I decided I would make sure my companion animals are cared for.

Like you many of my friends have decided that they will no longer adopt pets in case the pets outlive the people. Still, one of my friends whose dog recently died is looking for a dog who is about 7 or 8 years old. They figure they can adopt an adult or senior dog that will not outlive them.

We still talk about our departed pets too. We have two senior cats now and no dogs. But, there is always fostering...so I keep saying I will foster animals as long as I am able.

@treehouse5437 Let me applaud you for thinking like this. In my last working career, I worked in the legal field. I have seen personally and professionally the outcome of not planning and thinking before the need arises. It can be difficult/heartbreaking for the individual, the family, friends, and everyone, believe me!

In 2015 I received a diagnosis of an ultra-rare kidney disease, which has no cure. At that time I was single, no dependents nor children, and chose to research how to prepare for my end-of-life issues. Our county's Area Agency on Aging was a great resource to help me understand what to consider and how to accomplish what I wanted. I ultimately prepaid for my funeral/memorial and all the accompanying costs, choosing a plan that transferred in the event I moved [which did happen!] I also paid for and created power of attorney, medical power of attorney, will, etc.

If you have family and friends, and you have thought about and considered your personal decisions and choices, talk to those people! Let them know. You may live for a long time, you may not; it's not in our crystal ball to know. And if you change your mind, pass that information on. My husband and I have our individual paperwork committed to an encrypted memory stick his son keeps, plus we have copies. I keep my POLST registry sticker on the fridge, a copy in my car. Personally, I have used 5 Wishes as a guiding document https://www.fivewishes.org/for-myself/

Coming to terms with mortality is not a comfortable topic for many people. I have always been a more logical minded person, and this seems to fall in to "doing what you need to do".
Ginger

If you have any subscriptions or any passwords for your computer accounts, be sure to write them down somewhere, put them in an envelope and hide them in your house. Tell one or two trusted people where to find them. If your computer itself has a password lock on it, be sure to include that password as well.

I've had friends whose S.O.'s have passed away who are locked out of accounts and can't cancel recurring subscriptions and things like that.