Rockville, Maryland – Basic Estate Planning Steps

Posted on: March 16th, 2010 by

CPA Rockville - Estate PlanRockville, Maryland – There are 8 basic steps to follow to planning your estate that coincide with the steps in your life:

1) Once you reach adulthood (18 yrs old), you should create both financial and medical powers of attorney.

2) Upon marriage, both you and your spouse should have, at the very least, a simple will.  At this time, powers of attorney can be switched over to your spouse if you so desire.

3) At the birth/adoption of the first child, both parents should acquire a sufficient amount of life insurance to ensure their child’s well-being until at least adulthood.  Legal documentation must also be drafted to ensure individual(s) designated to care for their child will , in fact, be the one(s) awarded custody.  As the number of children increase, so should the insurance policies.

4) As your assets increase and your children age, a trust may be developed to preserve your assets for the benefit of your children.

5) When you become an “empty nester”, your life insurance coverage may be reduced, but you may want to consider investing in long-term care insurance.

6) Your end of life wishes must be discussed and adequately documented by an estate planner in Rockville.

7) Prepaid funerals, burial plans, and cremations are very common these days.  These services only increase over time, however if you make arrangements and payments ahead of time, you can often get today’s rate for a future date down the line.

8 ) Within your trust, you should include an itemized list of your valuable possessions and who you are willing them to, to prevent turmoil in the future.


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