Plymouth, MI, Estate Planning Attorney

If you live and own property in Plymouth, you know what a great community this is. Someday, you’d love to pass down the wealth you’ve built here to the next generation so they can continue to enjoy their lives in this community. However, doing this as effectively as possible will require some planning.

Bingham Legal Group PC is an estate planning law firm serving clients in Plymouth, Michigan. We can help you with any estate planning needs you have. For instance, we can help you move your assets into trusts to keep them out of probate and protect your ability to pay for long-term care. We can help you create a valid will that clearly specifies your beneficiaries and who should receive your assets when you pass on. We can help you designate agents who can make financial and medical decisions for you if you become unconscious or are terminally ill.

Whatever your estate planning needs might entail, our experienced law firm can help you achieve your goals and prepare for the future. If you need help with any aspect of the estate planning process in Plymouth, Michigan, contact Bingham Legal Group PC today for an initial consultation to discuss your needs and learn more about your options.

Estate Planning Services We Provide

Estate planning services Bingham Legal Group PC provides for our clients in Plymouth, Michigan, include:

• Wills
• Trusts
• Long-term care planning
• Planning for non-traditional families and individuals
• Power of attorney

A comprehensive and thoughtful estate plan can do much for you and your loved ones, reducing stress and ensuring everyone is cared for. Meeting with one of our estate planning attorneys is one of the smartest decisions you can make to protect your family’s future.

Making a Will in Plymouth, Michigan

Making a will is the first step in creating a comprehensive estate plan. If you don’t have a will, your assets will pass down according to Michigan’s intestate succession laws. These laws specify what your spouse will receive, followed by your children, grandchildren, parents, and siblings. While most people want their surviving loved ones to inherit from their estate, they also want to decide who their beneficiaries are rather than having the state of Michigan decide for them.

Lack of clarity is sometimes an issue in a will. Disagreements about interpretation can lead to hard feelings or even litigation between loved ones. An estate planning law firm can help you prepare a legally valid will that expresses your wishes clearly, preventing future disagreements between your family members.

Protecting Your Assets with a Trust

Although having a will is essential for anyone who owns property, it may not be sufficient for everyone. When you pass down assets in a will, those assets must go through probate before they pass to your beneficiaries. Probate is simply the process by which a probate court verifies a will. This process takes time and happens publicly, so it’s not ideal if you want your heirs to receive what you’ve left for them quickly or privately.

An estate planning law firm can protect your assets with a trust, which will hold them for you, so they won’t need to go through probate. You can still benefit from the assets in your trust while you are alive, and your beneficiaries can benefit from them after your passing. There are different types of trusts for different purposes, so you can use them to avoid probate, pass down your assets to a chosen charity, or even to help you pay for your long-term care.

Long-Term Care Planning

Long-term care planning is one of those issues that most people don’t think about until they have an urgent need for help. Unfortunately, that can lead to real problems. Nursing homes are extraordinarily expensive, and not everyone can afford them. Medicare doesn’t cover long-term care, so if you can’t afford nursing home care, your only option may be Medicaid.

Unfortunately, Medicaid has asset limits that can prevent you from getting care if you own too much property. They also have a five-year lookback period that can result in penalties if you try to dispose of your assets at less than fair market value to qualify for benefits.

What can you do? By having your estate planning law firm create a Medicaid trust more than five years before you think you might need it, you can continue to benefit from your assets while still qualifying for benefits. This can cover your long-term care costs, saving your family a lot of money.

Planning for Non-Traditional Families

If your family is a traditional one, then a traditional estate plan is exactly what you need. However, many families don’t fit that mold, and a traditional estate plan isn’t always a good fit. For example, if you are an unmarried couple, a family with adopted kids, an aunt raising her nieces and nephews, or a same-sex couple, there are legal issues specific to your situation that may affect your estate plan.

Not every estate planning law firm is equally familiar with these issues or how to modify an estate plan to ensure that possible problems are dealt with ahead of time. If your family is not traditional, make sure that the law firm you’re working with is experienced at helping your type of family.

Power of Attorney

Many circumstances can leave a person incapacitated, including:

• A serious car accident
• A terminal illness
• Long-term unconsciousness
• A severe stroke

What can you do if you are incapacitated and cannot communicate your wishes to your doctors or family members? If your healthcare team doesn’t know your wishes, it can be almost impossible for them to know for sure what healthcare decisions you’d want them to make.

You can plan for this situation beforehand with a power of attorney or a designation of patient advocate form. Michigan uses the phrase “designation of patient advocate” for a healthcare power of attorney, but otherwise, they are the same thing.  A power of attorney or designation of patient advocate designates an agent to make decisions on your behalf if you become incapacitated. It also provides guidance on what decisions you would want them to make depending on the circumstances. Your agent cannot overrule you if you disagree, so you don’t surrender any of your autonomy by filling out a power of attorney form.

Contact an Estate Planning Lawyer Serving Plymouth, Michigan, Today

As you can see, estate planning involves many facets and can help you and your family in the present and future. Designing the right estate plan for you depends on the skills of an experienced estate planning lawyer. Any estate planning lawyer can write a will, but not every lawyer knows the ins and outs of building a comprehensive estate plan that is perfect for your family’s needs.

Our lawyers at Bingham Legal Group PC have over 60 years of combined experience. We have helped many different types of families, including families like yours. We have the legal knowledge and experience to help you achieve your goals without wasting time or money. If you need help with any aspect of estate planning in Plymouth, Michigan, contact Bingham Legal Group PC today to arrange your initial consultation.