Enjoying Every Moment: How Estate Planning Can Enhance Your Retirement Experience

Unless I win the lottery tomorrow, I’m not particularly close to retirement. I’m not putting much thought into how I’ll be spending my Golden Years, considering long cruises in the Caribbean, or contemplating a move to the Villages or Sun City anytime soon. I normally wouldn’t be thinking about Alzheimer’s, dementia care, or the effects of a bad fall, either.

However, I find myself thinking about these matters all the time. Why? Because these are concerns that come up on a near-daily basis during my conversations with clients:

  • Where will I live?
  • What if something happens to me?
  • How will I pay for it?


Why are they so full of retirement stress? Ultimately, planning for the future requires us to confront our own mortality in a direct way. But because it can be easier to simply avoid the thoughts, they put off creating an estate plan. 

People often think that estate planning is only about deciding what happens after you’re gone. While that’s certainly part of it, a good estate plan also helps you plan for your own future. In short, estate planning enables you to devise a framework for your future instead of being left to the whims of fortune or fate. 

But creating your own safety nets requires some big decisions and a great deal of thought. So, is it worth it? Let’s look at just a few of the ways putting a comprehensive plan in plan can help reduce stress and allow you to enjoy your retirement more. 

Forget the “Estate” Part – It’s About Planning

Uncertainty breeds fear. If something were to happen to you, how long would your money last? Who would help with your bills? What if someone has to make critical medical decisions on your behalf?

Retirement stress is real, but a comprehensive estate plan will answer each of these questions ahead of time and ensure that everything is done according to your wishes.

Trusts Can Help You Pay for the Future

Name a financial concern and it is likely that you can set up a trust to help deal with it! Want to make sure your partner receives money each month after you’re gone? Will you help your kids with their educational expenses? Need to ensure that a loved one who has special requirements gets top quality care? 

Yes, there are trusts for all of these. And once you set them up, you can rest easy knowing that you no longer have to worry about what will happen to the people you love if something happens to you.

Powers of Attorney and a Living Will Empower You

I know it isn’t fun or easy to think about situations where you might not be able to care for yourself or communicate with your healthcare provider, but planning is empowerment. A good plan is kind of like insurance. Chances are, those things won’t happen, or won’t occur for years, but it’s nice to know you’re covered should a tragedy occur.

Consider this: naming a trusted person as your agent under a Financial Power of Attorney (authorizing them to act on financial matters) means you don’t have to worry about the possibility of missed bills, late payments, and harm to your credit score. Plus, it’s not an all-or-nothing decision. You not only get to choose who gets this power, but when it is triggered and what kind of decisions they are allowed to make. You set the boundaries!

Having a Medical Power of Attorney means you put your healthcare desires down in writing and appoint someone you trust to communicate those desires when you can’t. This can help to alleviate retirement stress on you and your loved ones because they’ll know what you want, what you need… and what you don’t. And again, just like with a Financial Power of Attorney, you can limit the medical powers your chosen representative has.

A Living Will is a slightly different beast. I think it’s safe to assume that all of us will die eventually. This document will give you a bit more control over your end-of-life care and any life-sustaining measures that may be used on your behalf. For example: would you want to be placed on a ventilator? Whether and to what extent you want medical advancements to keep you alive should be up to you. A Living Will makes your wishes clear.

When You’re Not Worrying about the Future, It’s a Lot Easier to Enjoy the Moment

I know creating these plans isn’t fun, but Regina and I do our best to make them easy! Putting off your plan won’t stop time. Avoiding the problem won’t give you peace of mind.

You know what will help you sleep easier? Making the plan you’ve been avoiding. 

Hopefully this is reaching you long before you retire. But even if you’re done working, now is always better than later when it comes to planning for your future and your legacy. Completing your estate plan will allow you to rest easy and enjoy the present.

Need help? Have any questions? That’s what we’re here for. 

Andrew

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