Estate Plans Are Extremely Vital For Everyone Involved
When queer people plan what happens to their stuff when they’re not here, they often get help to make sure everything goes smoothly. In places like Palm Springs, they can find advice specifically for LGBTQ+ folks about how to handle legal stuff and keep their belongings safe.
They’re told to write down everything they want to happen after they’re gone, like who gets what, and to make sure it’s all legal.
This helps make sure their loved ones are taken care of the way they want, and it gives queer people and couples peace of mind about their legacy and their family’s future.
Quick Summary:
- 10 Important Things for LGBTQ+ Couples to Know About Estate Planning:
- Unlimited Marital Deduction
- Splitting Gifts
- Retirement Accounts
- Benefits
- Florida’s Homestead Rules
- Right to Own Property as Tenants by the Entirety (TBE)
- Elective Share
- Pretermitted Spouse
- Portability
What is Estate Planning for Same-Sex Couples?
Estate planning for same-sex couples means making legal plans to keep their money safe. It also makes sure they inherit what they want. Estate planning protects their family in the LGBTQ+ community. This guide looks at special things to think about and includes important steps for same-sex couples to plan their estates.
What are the Palm Springs LGBTQ+ Legacy Planning Tips?
Legacy planning is essential in all couples, including LGBTQ+. Here are the ways on how to secure benefits in the event a partner dies.
Make a Will or Trust
Crafting a will or establishing a living trust serves as the cornerstone of a robust estate plan. A will offers a straightforward and cost-effective means to:
- Designate beneficiaries for your assets
- Appoint guardianship for your children
- Assign a trusted individual to oversee any assets passed down to minors
- Nominate an executor to carry out your wishes.
In the absence of such documents, intestate laws dictate asset distribution, potentially leaving your long-term partner without inheritance rights.
Avoid Probate
Probate is like a big official wrap-up for your stuff after you’re gone, but it can take a long time and cost a lot of money, which isn’t great for your loved ones.
For unmarried couples, skipping probate can be tricky because they don’t automatically get the same benefits as married couples.
But there are ways to sidestep it, like setting up living trusts, using transfer-on-death accounts, or owning things jointly with your partner. These tricks can help make sure your things go where you want them to without all the hassle of probate.
Create A Health Care Directive
Health care directives are plans for your medical care if you can’t talk about it. There are two main parts: the living will, and the power of attorney for health care. The living will is where you write down what treatments you do or don’t want. The power of attorney for health care is where you choose someone to make medical decisions for you.
Sometimes these are two separate papers, and sometimes they’re one. When you make a health care directive, you can choose your partner to make decisions for you if something happens and you can’t speak for yourself.
Make a Financial POA
A financial power of attorney is like giving someone permission to handle your money if you can’t do it yourself. If you think there might be a time when you can’t manage your money, or if you want your partner to help out with money in an emergency, you can create a durable power of attorney for finances. This paper makes it official that your partner can take care of your money when you’re not able to.
Reduce Taxes
Reducing taxes means paying less money to the government. There are different kinds of taxes, like federal and state taxes. Some ways to lower taxes include things like making donations to charity or investing in certain savings accounts. By finding ways to reduce taxes, you can keep more of your money for yourself and your family.
What are the 10 Things the LGBTQ+ Community Should Consider When Creating an Estate Plan?
Making a plan for what happens to your stuff after you’re gone is really important for everyone, including LGBTQ+ people.
Put together is a list of the top 10 things to think about when making this plan. This is especially for LGBTQ+ folks, to make sure their wishes are followed and their loved ones are taken care of.
-
Unlimited Marital Deduction
The unlimited marital deduction allows a spouse to transfer an unlimited amount of assets to their partner upon death without incurring estate or gift taxes.
-
Splitting Gifts
Splitting gifts allows individuals to distribute their assets among multiple beneficiaries, ensuring equitable treatment and addressing diverse familial relationships and obligations.
-
Retirement Accounts
Splitting gifts in estate planning involves dividing assets among different beneficiaries to ensure fair distribution, reflecting diverse family structures and relationships within the LGBTQ+ community. This approach allows individuals to tailor their estate plans to accommodate their specific needs and preferences.
-
Benefits
Social Security benefits may present unique considerations for LGBTQ+ individuals and couples in estate planning.
-
Florida’s Homestead Rules
Florida’s homestead law offers strong protection for your property against creditors, ensuring its safety. As a married same-sex couple, you both gain the right to inherit the homestead property, securing your shared ownership and legacy.
-
Right to Own Property as Tenants by the Entirety (TBE)
If you and your partner own a property together in a special way called TBE (Tenants by the Entirety), a creditor can’t take the property unless both of you have a judgment against you.
Also, if one of you dies, the property automatically goes to the other person without needing to go through probate, which is sometimes called survivorship.
-
Elective Share
If you die, your husband or wife can ask for 30% of your things, which is called the “elective” estate. But you can prevent this by making a deal before or after you get married, or by giving your spouse at least 30% of your stuff in your trust or will.
-
Intestate Inheritance Rights
If someone in Florida dies without a will, their spouse might get everything they owned. However, it could be different if they have kids together or from previous relationships. It’s a bit complicated, so it’s a good idea to look at Florida law, Section 732.201, to get a better idea of how it works.
-
Pretermitted Spouse
If you pass away before updating your will to include your spouse, this law says your spouse can inherit as if you didn’t have a will, unless your will says something different. You can find more details about this in Section 732.301.
-
Portability
If someone passes away before updating their will to include their spouse, this law lets the spouse inherit as if there was no will at all, unless the will clearly says something different
Get LGBTQ+ Estate Tips from an Attorney
When LGBTQ+ couples plan for what will happen to their things when they’re not here anymore, they need to think about some different rules. They have to make sure their relationship is recognized, keep their money and belongings safe, and make sure their partner gets what they’re supposed to if one of them dies.
Important things to think about include making a detailed will or trust, dealing with any problems that might come up with Social Security, and knowing how the laws in their state might affect their marriage and property rights.
By proactively addressing these issues, LGBTQ+ couples can safeguard their legacies and provide for their loved ones with confidence and clarity.
Need help with Palm Springs LGBTQ+ legacy planning? Ensure a smooth sailing process with the help of Brightwell Law. A family law attorney can help with the following areas:
- Living Will
- Power of Attorney
- Trusts
Get only the most trusted LGBTQ+ estate tips from Brightwell Law and secure your future today.
