One of the easiest ways to make life easier for your loved ones after you pass away is to start cleaning house today. What I mean by cleaning house is to go through your filing cabinets, safe deposit boxes or other locations of where you store paperwork regarding bank accounts, insurance, deeds to real estate, retirement accounts, annuities, brokerage accounts and any other important financial paperwork.

The reason it is important to start today to get “your house in order” is that your loved ones will have the daunting task of sifting through your paperwork in order to wrap up your estate, regardless of how large or small it may be. Make their task of wrapping up your estate as easy as possible by getting organized today.  Clean out your drawers, throw away old paperwork, inventory your assets and organize them so that your loved ones will have a less stressful time finalizing your affairs.

At this point we have only addressed financial paperwork, but personal property can create a nightmare for those left behind as well. Just as getting all of your financial affairs in order is important, it is equally as important to create a written detailed list of your personal items and who gets what of those items. What I have experienced is that personal items, often referred to as “heirlooms”, often creates more havoc for a family after their loved one dies than ever imagined.

Cleaning house will not happen overnight, but if you take the first step today by writing down where the location of your important papers are and then organizing those papers, you will definitely make life easier for those you love.

To learn more about how you can become better prepared for those you leave behind, please see one of our experienced estate planning attorneys for a no-cost consultation.

 
About Morris Hall:

At Morris Hall, we have focused our legal practice on estate planning for over 40 years.  Along with estate planning, our attorneys help clients and their families with matters of probate, trust administration, wills, power of attorneys, business planning, succession planning, legacy planning, charitable gifting and other important legal aspects.  We also have divisions in financial, real estate and accounting to help you incorporate all of your planning together, ensuring that everything works perfectly for your needs and situation. Our Arizona offices are located in Phoenix, Mesa, Scottsdale, Cave Creek, Tucson, Prescott, Flagstaff and Arrowhead.  Our New Mexico offices are located in Albuquerque, Las Cruces and Santa Fe.  Contact us today at 888.222.1328 to schedule an appointment!

This blog should be used for informational purposes only.  It does not create an attorney-client relationship with any reader and should not be construed as legal advice.  If you need legal advice, please contact an attorney in your community who can assess the specifics of your situation.