Estate Planning: 3 Surprising Things You Never Thought To Include In Your Plan

When it comes to estate planning, most people know exactly what big items they must include in their plan. Big items include real estate, money, savings, vehicles, collectibles or any other asset accumulated during the individual's lifetime. However, there are numerous things that are not so obvious. This is especially true in today's digital age where many assets are actually sitting on Cloud storage.

Before you plan your estate, you owe it to yourself and your family to research and look into some of these more obscure items that you might not have thought to include in your plan.:

Digital Assets and Software Products

It is estimated that many people store an average of $35,000 worth of digital assets on devices, such as tablets and smart phones. Common assets include movies, music, photos, books, software programs, apps and so forth. When you die, your loved ones will not likely be able to access these assets unless you include them in your estate plan.

Keep an accurate inventory of your digital assets along with all your log-in information and make it part of your estate plan. You may also wish to speak to a lawyer about creating a power of attorney that will allow someone to access your accounts if you're unable to do so. 

Provisions for Ex Spouses

Even though the ink on your divorce papers has dried long ago, you might still need to include your ex in your estate plan. Whether you want to make sure your ex gets marital property that wasn't dealt with during the divorce or if you want to tie up all loose ends so that they can't get a dime from your estate, you have to include them in your plan. 

Rules on How Your Children Can Spend their Inheritance

If you don't want your children to blow through their inheritance, you can stipulate how they can spend it. For example, if you want your 22-year-old to spend their inheritance on college, you can specify it in your plan. You can also dole out your children's inheritance when they have met certain milestones, such as graduating college, getting married or having children. 

There are numerous things you need to consider while planning your estate. It can be a very confusing process, so it's always advisable to hire a lawyer who will be able to help you with all the intricacies of the process. To learn more, contact a company like Vandeventer Black LLP.