Here is a checklist to add to your New Year’s Resolutions 1. Current Advanced Care Directives:
A. Designation of Health Care Surrogate for someone to make your medical decisions if you cannot communicate. Even if you are married, you must have this legal document and it needs to be current and done by a Florida lawyer. Do not rely on generic forms or a document you got from your doctor or a hospital or out of state documents.
B. Living Will. Very specific Florida language regarding “pulling the plug.” Must be witnessed and notarized and designate someone to make the final decision.
C. Durable Power of Attorney. Covers legal and financial matters while you are alive. Again, needs to be done by a lawyer who is aware of current Florida law, including many specific powers that must be initialed by you to be valid. Our current document is 26 pages. When you die, the advanced care directives die with you.
2. Last Will and Testament. If you are a Florida resident, you should have a Florida Will and your Personal Representative (Executor) must be a Florida resident or a blood relative.
3. If you own real estate, in Florida or elsewhere, you need one of these to avoid probate when you die.
A. Life Estate Deed: You own property for the rest of your life and you designate someone on the Deed to inherit it without probate when you die. Be sure it is an “enhanced” (also known as “Lady Bird”) Deed to allow you to sell it without consent or joinder of the person you name. Or
B. Trust and Deed transferring property to you (and your spouse) as Trustee(s) of your Trust. This allows you to name contingent beneficiaries if your first choice dies before you or with you in a common accident. The Revocable Living Trust also allows you to buy future properties as Trustee and to Amend the Trust at any time while you are alive. The Deed to your home should have language confirming that it remains your homestead.
Talk to your lawyer about the risks of a Life Estate Deed versus no risks for the Trust.
The above documents should be done with the assistance of an Estate Planning Attorney. The following need to be done by you personally:
4. Designate beneficiaries on all of your accounts to avoid probate. This is also known as payable on death (p.o.d.), transfer on death (t.o.d.) or in trust for (i.t.f.). Also designate contingent beneficiaries. Each institution has its own forms but it should not cost you anything except some time.
5. If you know that you want to be cremated or buried, contact cremation societies or funeral homes to discuss pre-need plans. You will be signing a contract to pre-pay for your funeral, saving your loved ones a lot of stress, time and money. Be sure to give a copy of your contract to your primary and contingent Personal Representative so they will know who to call.
6. Have car insurance that includes at least $100,000 of bodily injury liability (b.i.) and uninsured motorist (u.m.). Do not have any deductible on your P.I.P. (no fault). If you own more than one car, consider “stacking,” which allows you to double (two cars) or triple (three cars) your uninsured motorist coverage for a small additional premium. Uninsured motorist is the most important insurance you can have, since Florida does not require bodily injury coverage.
If you do all the homework on this list, you are well on your way to getting an “A” in Legalities of Life 101, having peace of mind and fulfilling some New Year’s Resolutions.
I am available for a free personal meeting or phone consultation regarding Estate Planning. Call me at (954) 569-4878. My address is 3275 W. Hillsboro Blvd., Suite 204, Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442. My website is http://www.martinzevinpa.com and my e-mail address is [email protected].
