If you are looking for a San Francisco Bay area estate planning lawyer, EMSeid Estate Law can design your estate plan for a seamless transfer of assets to your heirs or favorite charities.
Our approach is to make estate planning simple. We will educate you on the available instruments and strategies. You can be assured we will help you develop the estate plan that works best for you, your family and your assets.
Estate Planning Services
We offer you the following services:
Design and Prepare Wills and Trusts
The most essential aspect of any estate plan is creating a will or trust that specifies how you wish for your assets to be distributed. If you do not have a will at death, the state will provide the distribution for you, preferring your closest blood relatives. This is referred to as intestate succession and may or may not reflect your intentions. For this reason, we explore your relationships, assets and wishes and help you select and design the will or trust best suited for your circumstances and assets. We prepare your documents according to your wishes and recommend the most appropriate method for your asset distribution.
If you who own any real estate or have an estate valued at more than $150,000, a trust is recommended to avoid formal probate. Probate is a court action. Documents filed, including an inventory and appraisal of all of your assets, are a matter of public record. A trust is more complex than a simple will, but avoids the expense, time delay, and lack of privacy of probate. Additionally, a trust can be customized for circumstances where you want your assets managed on behalf of your children or other dependents.
Even if you establish a trust, it is a good idea to have a “pour over will” for assets that were not properly transferred to your trust.
Durable Powers of Attorney
One of the most important estate planning instruments is a durable power of attorney. This allows a trusted person to act on your behalf on financial matters if you are incapacitated and unable to take care of your financial affairs. This can avoid the need to have a conservator appointed for you. And, if a conservator is required, you have the opportunity to nominate who you want to act for you rather than leaving this important decision to the court.
Advance Healthcare Directives
The advance healthcare directive appoints the person you trust to make healthcare decisions for you if you are unable to communication your desires. The advance health care directive can include your preferences if you are placed in assisted living and for your end of life so your selected trusted agent can make healthcare decisions consistent with your desires and values if you are incapacitated. Without this document medical professionals may not have the authority to make critical end of life decisions for you.
Trust Funding
If a trust is appropriate for you, once your trust is designed and created, you must fund your trust with your assets to ensure your assets will be distributed according to your trust terms. This means that title to your titled assets must be changed from your individual name to your name as trustee of your trust. We can provide guidance and help you transfer your assets into your trust.
EMSeid Estate Law: San Francisco Bay Area Estate Planning Lawyer
We understand the process of creating an estate plan can seem like a complicated. We can educate you on your options so you can decide on the plan you want.
An estate plan design will take into account your financial goals, family priorities, and asset mix. We are most interested in giving you professional and attentive guidance at every stage. Please contact us for a complimentary phone consultation so that we can give you more information on our services.
EMSeid Estate Law: Personalized Estate Plans
We design and implement estate plans to meet the human and personal needs of our clients and their families, to eliminate the costs and delays of probate and to reduce or eliminate the tax burdens that can erode family wealth. Our estate plan will be based upon the information you provide us. Kindly answer the following questions to the best of your knowledge. All information will be kept confidential.
Please click here to view and download your Unmarried Questionnaire
Please click here to view and download your Married Questionnaire
Please contact us for a complimentary phone consultation on (408) 412-3568 so that we can give you more information on our services or schedule a consultation with EMSeid Estate Law.
