If you want your hard-earned assets protected for your loved ones after you pass, an estate plan is essential. Estate planning also helps Texans of all walks of life protect what you own from lawsuits or creditors. A Texas estate plan allows you to pass your valuables to the loved ones of your choosing with minimal legal issues.
Protect Your Assets with Texas Estate Planning
Your Houston, Texas estate plan is a written legal document that instructs others on what you want to happen to your assets when you are no longer able to care for yourself or control your assets’ ownership.
Texas estate planning helps protect your home and all other owned assets you find valuable – such as your vehicles, personal belongings, insurance plans, and many others. At the same time, your estate plan addresses how your assets will be distributed to your loved ones while simultaneously reducing your tax liability. Without an established plan, your assets are not protected, and the state’s law controls your assets’ future. In most cases, state law for your assets won’t align with how you wish your assets to be managed or passed on. Your estate plan is legal instruction that will protect you and provide you, your loved ones, your family, assets, goals, and legacy the best outcome in the eyes of the law.
Edwin Lee is an experienced asset protection lawyer in Houston, TX that can guide you and your loved ones down a path of asset protection.
The Importance of Estate Planning in Houston, TX
Proper asset protection planning in Houston allows you to leave a legacy for your family and community, diverting much of what would otherwise go to the government, potential creditors or be lost to lawsuits, like divorce, bankruptcy, business failure, malpractice, and many other types of cases.
There are many legal options available to protect your assets, and the methods used will depend upon your unique situation, goals, asset values, and family makeup.
Asset protection planning is a crucial step in the estate planning process.
Understanding Estate Planning in Texas
The estate planning process beings with understanding your long-term goals. We will discuss which assets you wish to protect in your golden years and which you wish to pass down to loved ones. Every estate plan is strategically designed to meet your individual planning needs. Edwin Lee, your Texas estate planning attorney, can help you prepare the best legal documents needed to achieve your personal estate planning goals.
What Documents Do I Need for My Estate Plan?
This is a very common question for many Texans creating an estate plan. The answer is that it depends. An experienced Houston estate planning attorney can advise you or a loved one on which documents are necessary to legally protect your Texas assets.
Your estate plan may include a mix of different legal documents, such as:
- A Trust or a Will
- A Living Will
- A Durable Power of Attorney
- A Healthcare Power of Attorney
- A Financial Power of Attorney
- A Letter of Intent
- A Guardianship Designation
It is a common misconception that an estate plan only needs a will or a trust, depending on the assets you wish to protect. However, there are many other documents you can include in your estate plan to safeguard your assets and seamlessly transfer them to your chosen loved ones once you’ve passed. A successful Texas estate plan should also include instructions for family members on how to access or control your assets should you become unable to do so on your own.
Your specific estate plan and the documents included depends on many factors, including the size and structure of your Texas estate and your unique wishes for your assets. Working with an experienced estate planning attorney, like Edwin Lee, can help you select and prepare the necessary documents for your Texas estate plan.
Your Houston Estate Planning Attorney
Your Houston estate planning attorney should help you safeguard your estate for every shift in life. As your children grow up, you marry or divorce, or sell or purchase new property, your asset protection needs will change. Our Houston law firm can help you update your estate plan to secure your assets and correctly pass on your legacy to your loved ones.
Edwin Lee Law can steer you or a loved one on the path of asset protection. Our Houston law firm is built upon strong client relationships and we work hard to meet your estate planning goals. Your legal needs matter to Edwin Lee Law.
Edwin Lee Law is here to help you and your loved ones understand Medicaid Planning, Crisis Planning, Asset Protection, and Estate Planning. Our law firm welcomes the opportunity to consult with new clients in Houston and the surrounding Texas areas to learn more about how we can help meet your asset protection needs.