Tax Season is Over

You’ve done your taxes, now it’s time to get your estate plan done! Ugh, tax season is the worst! It’s so much work for the average person. You must compile so many different documents into one place, fill out endless questions from your accountant, and then more likely than not, write a big check or prepare for money to be taken from your account by the government.

I understand that there are some people who have an organized system for keeping track of all of this information throughout the year so that when tax season comes back around you are prepared. But if you aren’t one of those people then you are scrambling to get your W2s, 1099s, proof of health insurance form, receipts for certain expenses, deductions, childcare payment, mortgage statement, and the list goes on and on. Lots of people file extensions because they can’t get everything organized in time for the April deadline. For me, the delay of something unpleasant doesn’t relieve stress, it just maintains a low level of anxiety in the back of my mind. I prefer to get something unpleasant over with and out of the way. The sooner it is over the better off I feel.

For some, getting your estate plan done falls under the same type of dread and anxiety-inducing process. However, it doesn’t have to be! When you get your estate plan done, you will have to share with your attorney similar pieces of information that you shared with your accountant. We care less about income and more about the types of assets you have, who the co-owners or beneficiaries are, and approximate value for estate tax purposes. So now that your taxes are all done, it’s an easy transition to get your estate plan done. You’ve already done the scavenger hunt for the information, now you can just share it with your attorney. Then your attorney does all the hard work, like your accountant.

There are many different reasons why people do not get their estate plans done, but dread of the paperwork shouldn’t be the reason. For clients who work with financial advisers, usually, the advisers send over a snapshot of your assets, so all you have to do is provide family information.

The best way to stop feeling anxious about something is to take action. With getting your estate plan done, the first action is to schedule a meeting. You schedule meetings and appointments every day, right? And most initial meetings are on Zoom, so you don’t even have to worry about leaving your home or finding a time when you and your spouse can make it. You can be sitting at your desk at work or in your car.

You know that you’ll have that peace of mind once you schedule the meeting because everything else will fall into place without much effort on your part. The hard part is over! You’ll also have peace of mind knowing that you’ve taken care of kids so that if the worst were to ever happen, you’ve set your kids up for the best-case scenario. So while you have all of your financial information at your fingertips, schedule a time to meet with an estate planning attorney to cross this unsexy item off of your to-do list!  We can help you get this done by calling us at 508.532.8689 or emailing us at admin@ladimerlaw.com.