OOG, sorry for your loss. I agree, digging through old pictures is probably the only good thing about losing a parent.
After being an executor of my dad's estate, I sat down with my mom and stepdad, we discussed her will. It's a good thing we did, because about two months ago she had a huge stroke. She's made a very good recovery but there are still heart issues. As a result of that we did find some corrections for her will are necessary and are being done now, so when (not if) the time comes it will go smoothly for me as executor.
I also had my will rewritten just in case. If I kick the bucket early, my kid is provided for and my bills all paid.
I did a bunch of this with swmbo'ed and my dad this past week. Most of the accounts already had her name on it, but there's certain things that she isn't going to want to deal with when the time comes, so the old man's name got added on an account to take care of that stuff. I also closed a few accounts and rolled them into others in order to simplify things for when the time comes.
Man, that's rough. So sorry for your loss.
As to the other matter at hand, I'll reiterate what I said in another thread: AN ELDER CARE/ESTATE PLANNING/MEDICAID ATTORNEY IS THE BEST MONEY YOU WILL EVER SPEND WITH A LAWYER. Probably, anyway. Unless you invent cold fusion or something. But for most of us, the benefit will be immense.
If you love your family you won't leave a mess for them to clean up on top of their grief.
whenry
New Reader
7/6/15 9:28 a.m.
One of the hardest things to get across to clients when doing estate planning is the idea that you can leave an asset to one person and legally they dont have to share. It may be the moral and correct thing to do but it is not legally required and just like in used cars and houses, oral conversations and promises are not enforceable. Unless there is a specific trust document, conveying all of an asset to an individual does exactly that and is rarely reversible.