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Leaving Your Legacy

Legacy Estate Planning in Raleigh NC is Important for Your Children's Future.

Estate planning in Raleigh NC can designate real property, personal items, and financial possessions to specific individuals. An estate plan can also convey how the creator wants to be remembered.  Personal value is an important part of one’s life. The things that are valued and how time is spent during our lives can really define us as an individual. Those values can be considered a legacy that can be preserved with proper estate planning.
Assets and possessions often included in estate plans encompasses:

  • Homes
  • Collections
  • Money
  • Cars
  • Art
  • Any assets that have financial value

However, valued assets don’t have to be of financial worth. There are some instances where individuals insist on preserving their values and legacy within their estate plan, so that these values can be passed on to their children or grandchildren.
One of the most famous cases where this has taken place recently is with the passing of Actor Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Within his estate plan, Hoffman left his children his values, along with financial stability for the rest of their lives.
Hoffman created a trust for his son that encompassed the following endowment that reflects his personal values and desire to ensure his son’s exposure to cultural experiences:
According to Forbes.com, Hoffman’s estate plan recites, “It is my strong desire…that my son, COOPER HOFFMAN, be raised and reside in or near the borough of Manhattan in the State of New York, or Chicago, Illinois, or San Francisco, California, and if my guardian cannot reside in those cities, then it is my strong desire, and not direction, that my son, COOPER HOFFMAN, visit these cities at least twice per year throughout such guardianship. The purpose of this request is so that my son will be exposed to the culture, arts, and architecture that such cities offer.”
This is a perfect example of preserving one’s values within an estate plan, so that they are passed down to children or grandchildren.
Estate Planning in Raleigh NC | How can a legacy or values be preserved an estate plan?

  • Instructions or “Letters of Wishes”
  • Trust Provisions
  • Revisions

It’s important to schedule routine visits with your lawyer to make sure your estate planning in Raleigh NC is up-to-date and that your values and legacy remain intact. In Hoffman’s case he did not do this. The end result? According to Forbes.com, Hoffman’s “trust referred to in the will only mentions Cooper, not his two younger sisters who were born after the will was signed. It provides that he’ll get half the trust principal when he reaches age 25, and the other half when he turns 30.”
Time and circumstances change. Life changes, as well. It’s important to alter your estate plan accordingly so that your values are shared with everyone you intended for them to be shared with.
To make sure your estate plan contains everything thing that you consider of value and is updated regularly, contact Eldreth Law Firm, PLLC, lawyer in Raleigh NC. We will work with you to make sure your estate plan is accurate and up-to-date.

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