Many people make the mistake of assuming that they are too young to create an estate plan. This is one of the top reasons for procrastination. Someone in their 30s may know that they need a plan, for example, but they will decide that they’ll circle back and make that plan in their 60s or 70s.
The truth, though, is that you can never be too young to create an estate plan. Even at a young age, there are many different benefits of estate planning:
Making medical decisions
One example of this is that you can use an estate plan to make medical decisions if a situation arises where you are incapacitated. This could happen if you’re involved in a serious car accident and suffer a head injury, for example.
Medical decisions are also made for elderly individuals as they age, but that doesn’t mean that a medical power of attorney will not help someone who is younger. You can never predict all of these types of events.
Choosing a guardian for your children
Another potential reason to use an estate plan at a young age is that you may be a parent. If you have young children who are still minors, someone needs to take care of them if you pass away unexpectedly.
You can use a guardianship designation to determine who this person will be in advance. Not only does this give you peace of mind, knowing that someone will take care of your children, but it also gives you a chance to talk to the guardian and make sure that they actually want that role.
As you do your estate planning at any age, take the time to carefully consider all of the necessary legal steps. There are many tools that can help you with your unique estate plan.