North Texas Dentistry Volume 9 Issue 5 2019 ISSUE 5 DE | Page 23

the assets from someone or something: creditors, estranged spouses, taxation. A trust can be used for this purpose and can be named as the beneficiary for some or all of your accounts. However, if you fail to update your beneficiary forms to name the trust, the protection you sought will not be there. Your attorney should tell you how to update your beneficiary forms when you create an estate plan. If he or she doesn’t cover this with you, be sure to ask. 4 Not understanding the ownership style of financial accounts For financial accounts (bank and brokerage) the style of own- ership will dictate what happens to the account in the end. Financial institutions routinely guide customers to set up sur- vivorship accounts. You are probably familiar with the phrase “Joint with Rights of Survivorship.” If your spouse is the joint account holder this may be what you want. When one spouse dies, the assets pass to the surviving spouse. But if you have an adult child on your financial accounts, per- haps because he or she helps you with your financial matters, this may not be the type of account ownership you want. The child on the account with you will be the survivor who receives the funds. You may want the funds to go to your spouse or be divided evenly among your children. A power of attorney may be a more appropriate way for a son or daughter to help you with your finances. Another dilemma can occur if you set up your accounts TOD or Transfer on Death, to your children. If all your accounts are set up in this manner, the estate may not have liquid assets to pay utility bills and property taxes while your estate is being settled. Be proactive. It’s not difficult to avoid the common pitfalls associated with naming beneficiaries – it just takes some atten- tion to detail and forethought. To get started, I recommend you create a complete beneficiary file. Talk to your estate planning attorney or other professional about your beneficiary designa- tions. Update your beneficiaries as needed. And review your beneficiary file periodically, especially if there are changes in your family. Taking these steps can eliminate some difficult situations for your heirs and ensure that your assets go to the people you wish. Norma B. Spencer, CRSP, ERPA is Manager of Retirement Plan Services at Bland Garvey. Does your business want to offer a retirement plan? Norma understands the options, will crunch the numbers and recommend a plan that works for your business. Contact her at [phone] or [email protected] www.northtexasdentistry.com | NORTH TEXAS DENTISTRY 23