Planning Your Estate When You Have Young Children

The primary motivation behind the process of estate planning is to make sure that your family is provided for in any eventuality and there are no guarantees with regard to the timetable. When you go to your favorite news site, read the local paper, or tune into a news network on television you hear about people of all ages passing away suddenly each and every day. None of these people or their families expected the unthinkable to take place. As heartbreaking as it is under any circumstances, the consequences of an unexpected tragedy are compounded when no preparations have been made.

This is especially true when there are young children left behind. If you and your spouse are the parents of dependent children there are two essentials that must be included in your will. For one thing a guardian for the children should be named so that the person of your choosing will adopt that role should it become necessary. This gives you peace of mind and it prevents any disagreements that could arise among family members.

The way that you provide for your children financially is through the purchase of life insurance coupled with the inclusion of a testamentary trust in your will. Each spouse will be the first beneficiary of the other, but you then make the trust the secondary beneficiary of the policies and you name a trustee. This person should be someone who has the best interests of the children at heart who is willing to take on a long term responsibility because the trustee will be administering the trust until the beneficiaries reach adulthood. Should you and your spouse perish together the trust will be funded by the policy proceeds, and though no words can describe the impact of losing your parents at a young age, your children will at least be left with some financial support.