In this video series we are working through the five reasons why you need to do your estate planning. This video covers the fifth reason – with good estate planning can protect your assets.

While Wills and Revocable Living Trusts won’t protect your assets from your potential creditors, you can use other estate planning tools to provide that asset protection from your potential creditors.

This kind of planning can be especially helpful to protect your assets from a potential lawsuit. We live in a highly litigious, victim-oriented society, where people try to place blame for their troubles on someone who has the financial ability to pay. If someone thinks you have “deep pockets,” you are at risk. Even if you are not responsible, you never know what a jury might decide to award a plaintiff, regardless of how frivolous their lawsuit may be.

If you fall into one of these categories, then your assets are at increased risk:
High-risk professions, such as doctors and dentists;
Business Owners;
Real Estate Investors and Landlords.

For clients in or near their retirement years, protecting your assets from potential nursing home costs and other creditors can be a major concern. With the average cost of nursing home care exceeding $8,000 per month, families are concerned about how to pay for that care. Without proper advance planning, an extended nursing home stay can quickly cause a family to lose their life savings.

Your estate plan can also be used to protect your assets from the cost of nursing home care, which can allow you to:
Reduce or even eliminate nursing home bills;
Protect your spouse from a nursing home spend-down;
Protect your life savings;
Save the family home, vacation home, family farm, or any other important assets;
and Preserve an inheritance for your children and other loved ones.

If you want to talk with one of our attorneys about your estate plan, you can call our office (419-872-7670) or request an appointment from our website (www.chamberlain-law.net).