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No Loose Ends

Create an end-of-life plan to protect your loved ones.

Drafting a will and planning your funeral arrangements are not your typical, cheery weekend activities.

However, if you choose to leave such work unfinished, your loved ones will face confusion, stress and possibly tension between one another after your death. As with purchasing life insurance, a few steps now will protect the ones you love after you’re gone.

“If you don’t plan now, someone will have to plan for you after you’re gone,” says Modern Woodmen Advanced Underwriting Attorney David Chanez.

Start with a question

David advises sitting down and asking yourself a simple question to begin. “If you pass away today, what would you like to happen to your money, your property and your survivors?”

While thinking about the end of life can be threatening to some people, thinking of your answers to that question will help you find a starting point.

Make sure you consider the little details that sometimes slip through the cracks. What do you want done with your pets? Where are the account numbers and passwords your dependents might need? What funeral arrangements do you want?

Regardless of age or level of wealth, these are questions you should have answered for your survivors.

Before visiting a lawyer, take some time to brainstorm the answers to those questions. Taking those initial steps yourself will save time and money at the lawyer’s office.

Eventually, David says, you will need to see a lawyer to prepare the will and other legal documents. For the average person, the whole process should only take one or two visits to a lawyer.

“And it won’t be as expensive as people think,” David adds, saying that for most people, the cost will run a few hundred dollars.

Fund your plan

In addition to leaving pertinent documents and information for your survivors, it’s important to make sure your survivors can handle your final expenses. Life insurance is a great option for funding your end-of-life plan.

David says life insurance offers a form of liquid cash that can be used to pay off debt and provide immediate income for survivors.

Without life insurance protection, many end-of-life plans are useless.

“The best laid plan, without any money to fund it or carry it out, is rather meaningless,” David says.

Keep it updated

Once you’ve created your end-of-life plan, you need to continue to update it throughout your life.

“Annually would be idea, but at least update your plan after significant life changes – like a marriage or a new child or promotion,” David says.

While the tasks themselves might not be your favorite way to spend a weekend, the goal of protecting loved ones after you’re gone is ultimately a very satisfying thing.