Prepare an LOI

LOI = Letter of Instruction, not laughing out loud or lots of luck.
It goes along with your will and ties together loose ends that have not been addressed through your will or trust.

In an LOI you can mention to whom you would like to leave a piece of jewelry, your favorite tools, a piece of art, an expensive watch, etc. This helps your executor know your wishes and reduces any family friction as to "who gets what"!

You may also state certain requests and preferences in your LOI about funeral arrangements, services, burial or cremation as well as songs, prayers, rituals and family traditions.

If you are young and in good health with no intention of dying you may pose these questions to your parents or grandparents. You certainly want to honor their wishes and encouraging them to put these wishes in writing provides immeasurable relief to those left behind with the job of distributing their estate.

It also opens the door to:
Bring up inheritance issues for discussion.
Decide what "fair" means.
Ask family members what items they would like.
Consider how to deal with family dynamics and conflicts before they arise.

Be $ Smart - make your wishes known by preparing an LOI to ease the task for your loved ones.

THE Important Conversation

Too many families are avoiding THE important conversation. No, not the one about the birds and the bees; the one about estate planning. Estate means what you own and planning means how it will be used in the future. You don’t have to own much to do some estate planning.

Maybe you are young and have not built your estate yet but chances are you have parents who have accumulated a few things. You need to know what they have done about estate planning. It then becomes tricky. You hesitate to ask your parents about their retirement or estate plans. You might not want to appear greedy or eager to see them pass on. Your parents are reluctant to share this information with you for fear of giving you hopes (or disappointment) about inheritance. So everyone is in the dark!

Not having “the important conversation” can lead to misconceptions. Who will care for your aging parents? You? Your sibling? Or are you hoping your parents will have the resources to move into an assisted living facility? Won’t you be surprised when they decide to move in with you! Or better yet, take your inheritance and buy a fancy home in St. Thomas.

Do your parents have sufficient income to stay in their own home? Will they need both physical and financial help from you along the way? Maybe they have sufficient assets to live a long and comfortable life. How will you know, as they age, if they have participated in some scam that could drastically reduce their assets unless you know what assets they have?

At first it might feel awkward. Start with a few simple questions like: how are you and dad doing? What are your plans for the future? How will you make that happen? It might take two or three tries but eventually they will open up and you’ll all feel better.

If you are the parent, make time to have THE conversation with your children or loved ones.

Be $ smart - give yourself and your parents peace of mind. Have THE conversation.