There are times when having a will truly help parents and heirs alike. One such instance occurred in California after a husband and wife passed, leaving their estate to their son. It had been their wishes that the family home be sold and the proceeds be placed into the L&A Kessler Family Foundation as a means of supporting the foundation. In cases such as this where married couples want to provide for an entity that they support, having a will is essential.
The family set up the foundation with the Jewish Community Foundation of the East Bay. The L&A Kessler Family Foundation is only one of 11 supporting foundations managed by the Jewish Community Foundation. By pre-planning their wishes, the family was able to make the transition of assets smoothly and quickly.
By having an estate plan that clearly details the wishes of the parents, children and heirs will have a much better idea of what is needed in terms of asset distribution. This is one of the best ways to avoid probate, which can be very costly and time consuming. When individuals or married couples draft a will, they save their heirs an enormous amount of trouble later on.
For those who wish to give their heirs a truly valuable gift, drafting a will (and other legal documents such as a durable power of attorney) is well worth the small amount of time it takes to craft and file these documents. Consulting with a California area estate planning attorney may be the best first step to take. An attorney well versed in this area of law may be able to detail all of the options that are available.
Source: The J Weekly, “Heirs donate proceeds from sale of Piedmont home to charity foundation,” Patricia Corrigan, Nov. 3, 2011