According to a 2008 study by Martindale-Hubble and FindLaw.com, approximately 60% of American adults do not have a will or other estate plan in place. While no one wants to confront this eventuality, virtually all of us want to determine the distribution of our life’s work–how our assets can go to support family, friends and special organizations. Would you want to leave this distribution up to a court-appointed agent who simply follows a formula? Many persons do not engage in estate planning because they just do not know where or how to begin the process.
Christus Cabrini Foundation and Lineage Law, LLC have teamed up to provide a free seminar on May 14th from 10:00am to 11:30am that will provide you with knowledge and information about estate planning, the probate process, and how you can use your assets to add benefits to your family through the inclusion of charitable planning techniques.
Live
Your primary responsibility is to provide for your needs and those of your family during life. We all go through phases in life: accumulation of assets (buying a home, building a business, saving for retirement), conservation of assets (financing your retirement years), and distribution of assets. By looking at your assets through a different perspective, you can increase the income from and value of your assets to your heirs through inclusion of charitable planning techniques.
Leave
Throughout American history, each generation has generally enjoyed a better life than the previous one. Caring for our family’s needs after death is but one reason for this uniquely American phenomenon. Without proper estate planning, many families find themselves in turmoil as members struggle with each other over possessions and other assets. A family discussion around the question of “How much is enough?” can be a valuable starting point. Attendees at the May 14th event will learn strategies and tactics to begin this discussion in a caring and thoughtful manner.
Give
Americans are the most generous people on earth–making $300 billion in charitable gifts in 2011, according to a GivingUSA study. Individuals make 80% of these gifts, through direct and estate giving. Through charitable giving during life, many individuals are realizing higher incomes through charitable planned gifts. These persons view their giving as two-fold: supporting the organizations that have touched them; and using charitable gifts to benefit their personal financial situations. One need not have a Gates- or Buffett-sized estate to take advantage of these concepts–just a passion for an organization.
You can learn more about effective estate planning by attending the free seminar hosted at the Christus Cabrini Mediplex across from Christus St. Frances Cabrini Hospital on Masonic Drive, scheduled for Tuesday, May 14th from 10:00am to 11:30am. For more information, directions and to RSVP, call (866) 581-3627.
