SALT LAKE CITY — Death can be a difficult topic to broach with loved ones, but during National Estate Planning Week this week, it may be a good time to look at a current estate plan or think about creating one.
An estate plan includes premeditated decisions about end-of-life care and financial decisions for when someone is unable to state their preferences.
It answers questions like, what happens when the person passes away? Who takes their property and who oversees that process?
It's never too early to start thinking about the process.
An attorney told FOX 13 News that any adult 18 and older should take steps to create an estate plan. It starts with thinking about the important people in a person's life that they would want to include in plans.
"Once you’ve identified who those people are, you’re going to have some natural fits into the roles of the agent and the power of attorney,” said attorney Mitch Mitchell. “Who’s going to make those important decisions for me either pertaining to my finances or my healthcare, my executor named under my will? Who will take charge of my estate when I’m no longer here?
"You’re going to start with that list, plug those names into those roles when you’re answering these questions to create your document and then you’ll have created the documents. But you should at the same time also talk with those people about what you’re doing."
Estate planning may seem like a pricey process since it can involve lawyers, but there are less expensive options.
"You don’t necessarily need to go to the attorney’s office to create a plan. Instead, you can go online, go to a website and start answering some simple questions,” explained Mitchell. “You can get those very important documents without visiting with an attorney."
Mitchell says life event markers are a good time to revisit an estate plan for those who have them. For instance, having children, getting married, getting divorced or receiving a one-fall inheritance from parents or another family member.
If none of that is applicable, the general rule is to revisit an estate plan every three to five years.
Those interested in an estate plan can CLICK HERE.