When you require someone else to speak for you financially and legally, you can do so through a POA.

Everything to Know When It’s Time to Denote a POA

A power of attorney is someone who can speak for you regarding financial and legal matters. If you believe that you would require a POA in the future, it’s important that you denote a POA ahead of time. While the POA process isn’t exactly complicated, naming a power of attorney can significantly affect your life, which is why you must weigh all of your options.

When You Should Denote a POA

In many cases, a power of attorney is denoted to sign a document or make some kind of financial transaction when the grantor is unable to. If you ever become incompetent or incapacitated, it’s essential that you have already named a POA. If this isn’t the case, it will be impossible for anyone to handle your legal or financial affairs. With a POA on hand, these issues are mitigated. In fact, your POA will be able to begin handling your legal or financial affairs immediately when the need arises. The individual you choose to act as your POA will have the means to:

• Manage your insurance
• Pay your bills
• Manage any active investments that you have
• Fill out and file any tax returns
• Handle various banking transactions
• Manage your real estate, including selling your home

Power of Attorney Types

There are three basic types of power of attorney, which include a durable power of attorney, a non-durable power of attorney, and a springing power of attorney. A durable power of attorney automatically goes into effect when the document is signed and will only expire in the event of your death. A non-durable power of attorney will go into effect when you sign but will expire if you become mentally incompetent. As for a springing power of attorney, this document goes into effect when a certain condition, event, or date has been reached. It expires when you die.

Costs Associated With Naming a POA

A POA can be filed online or through a lawyer. If you decide to file online, the costs can range anywhere from $10-$50. The costs may be somewhat higher if you decide to file a POA with a probate attorney in Las Vegas.

Is It Necessary to Denote a Power of Attorney?

When preparing your will, you may ask yourself if you need to denote a power of attorney. In order to answer this question for yourself, it is important to understand what exactly a power of attorney is, and how it plays a role in the executing of your will.

What Is a Power of Attorney?

A power of attorney is an individual who for all intents and purposes has the legal ability to make any financial decisions on your behalf. This is necessary for dealing with banks, investments, creditors, and debtors of the deceased. You might be wondering if this is so essential how it can will not include a power of attorney.

What Happens Without Power of Attorney?

If no power of attorney is listed in the will, or an executor, the court usually appoints one for you, and it is usually the spouse of next of kin.

This is the reason you’ll usually want to appoint someone to have power of attorney for you. You’ll want to make sure the person handling your finances and preparing the estate for passing down to your beneficiaries is someone you can trust and who will carry out the will properly.

If you are working on writing your last will and testament or looking for more information on how to deal with the planning of passing on your estate, an estate planning attorney in Las Vegas may be able to help you.

When Is the Best Time to Create a Will?

While legally you can create a will once you hit age 18, you might not necessarily need one at such a young age. There’s no magic number when it comes to the age you should write your will but more a series of checkmarks to see if writing a will would be in your best interest.

Wait If You Are Single With No Assets

You shouldn’t be too concerned with writing a will just yet if you’re young, broke, single, and don’t have kids. You just don’t have enough assets to warrant it, and your estate would likely go to your parents or guardians, or what little you do have. Most of your estate would likely end up going towards settling your debts anyway, so there might not be much leftover anyway.

Create a Will If You Have a Family

If you are married or have children, you should definitely write a will. While your estate and guardianship of your children and their share of the estate will likely go to your spouse, this isn’t a guarantee, and why take that chance if you don’t have to.

Assess Your Assets

The other deciding factor of whether you should write a will at your current age or not is your net worth. If you have a positive net worth, you definitely should write a will as there will likely be an inheritance to be divided, and you’ll want to make sure it is distributed according to your wishes.

If you need help writing a will or are looking for more information on whether you should write a will, a probate attorney in Las Vegas may be able to assist you.

Tips for Writing a Will When You Don’t Have Children

Even if you don’t have children, it is a good idea to create an estate plan that includes a will or living trust. In many cases, the process of creating a will is the same whether you intend to give assets to a child or not.

How to Choose Your Beneficiaries When You Don’t Have Children

If you don’t have a biological child or grandchild to transfer assets to when you die, it doesn’t mean that you can’t give away assets in a strategic manner. For instance, you may want to give money to your favorite charity, your old high school or to a neighbor who may need help paying bills.

Who Will Oversee Your Estate?

A will allows you to name the person who will oversee your estate after you pass on. In most cases, an adult child acts in this capacity. However, if you don’t have children, you could ask a close friend, a sibling or a professional to act as the executor of your estate.

Do You Need a Will and a Trust?

Putting assets in a trust may reduce the amount of taxes that your estate has to pay. Assets that are in a trust generally bypass probate, which means that your beneficiaries get their money or other assets much faster. A trust administration lawyer in Las Vegas may be able to tell you more about how wills and trusts might coexist inside of your estate plan. In some cases, a pour-over will can be an ideal way to ensure that assets find their way into your living trust.

Determining Pet Care After Death Via Your Will

As you begin to review your assets and plan for the inheritance of your estate, you may start to think about pet care after death. Naturally, you want your best friend to be well cared for, and have the funds to do so. An estate planning lawyer in Las Vegas may help you create a plan. While you can’t leave funds directly to your pet when you die, you can set aside funds to ensure that your pet is taken care of once you pass away.

Finding a New Home for Fido

Including your pet in your will is relatively simple, and usually affordable. Most states view pets as the property of their owner. This means you can dictate through your will who they will go to once you pass away. Many owners do this, as no one wants to think about having to rehome pets once a beloved member of the family has passed away.

Covering the Cost of Pet Care After Death

If you’re concerned about ensuring pet care after death, you’re likely considering full care – including expenses that occur from food, grooming, and medical needs. While giving money to pets is not feasible, owners can put in their will that a portion of money may only be dispersed upon agreeing to take care of the pet. Should the individual disagree, the money may be kept by the estate.

Monitoring Money Usage

Ensuring that the money you set aside for pet care is used correctly can be somewhat difficult. Simply giving a sum of money to the individual you entrust with your pet does not guarantee that the money will be used as you dictated. However, owners have the option of utilizing pet trusts, which allow the money to only be dispersed for controlled uses. Unfortunately, this may come with an upfront cost to set up.