July 29, 2021
As the founder and principal attorney at Ibekwe Law, Iffy believes that every woman deserves to make decisions that affect her. A woman can accomplish these decisions with wills, trusts, and other estate planning documents. As a Black businesswoman and attorney, she is not your garden-variety estate planning attorney. She wishes to provide services to those who her area of the law has historically ignored.
Now, if you’re feeling confused or overwhelmed by what estate planning even is, DON’T WORRY, Iffy is going to break it down simply for us. We talk about what estate planning even is, why it’s important, how to go about thinking about getting started with an estate plan, how it can impact your financial success in the long run, and leave a legacy for those around you.
This is such an important topic but one that is often forgotten about or ignored until it’s too late. Iffy makes it so easy to understand, and also so beautifully explains the importance of setting up your life NOW to leave a powerful legacy long after you’re gone.
As an estate planning attorney, with an office based in Austin, TX but serving the entire state of Texas. Iffy has been a lawyer for the last 25 years where she loves to work with women, entrepreneurs, and families to impress the importance of setting up documents. That will help you with your health care decision-making and passing on all that you are building as an entrepreneur whether that is to your kids or causes that you believe in.
Estate planning is the area of law where you plan for yourself, a decision that will affect your body (healthcare, incapacitated), where you write those wishes down and you can pick a person who will be making decisions for you in every situation where you can’t make that decision. Estate planning allows you to do that in a financial sense. If you are ever out of the country and can’t make your rent or mortgage payments, or need to do something you can appoint someone who can be a point person for that on a long-term or short-term basis.
A lot of people think, “I don’t have a lot of stuff, why should I do this?”. If you are 18 or older and you have the capacity, you are competent enough to make decisions (nobody is in charge of your decision making) there are certain documents that you need to have in place. The health outcomes you would like, the certain person you would like to advocate for you, the person to help you if there are ever financial decisions. No one has access to you, no one has a right to your bank account unless they have been given permission and that is what estate planning does.
Estate planning traditionally is thought of as asset distribution. Who is going to get you stuff and how? Look around, even if you are renting: you see the art on your wall, your plants. When you die someone is going to have to be in charge of closing that down. Estate planning allows you to document your wishes. Who’s going to get what with your bank accounts, business accounts, and more. Who ends up being the successor, do you sell or close it down if you have a business.
That is estate planning, if you are a planner it is planning for your life.
The state has an estate plan set up for you. There are laws called intestacy laws, which is basically the scheme that each state in the US has as a way to distribute your property if you don’t put your wishes down on paper. Yes, it is a plan, but not YOUR plan. Estate planning allows you to say “I don’t want it going to this person, I want it going to these people or cause”. While it is possible to have your estate plan even if you don’t do anything, there are other things to consider.
It’s not just for you, but the people that you leave behind.
The price varies. A lot of it is value-based pricing. With estate planning, there are people who say they can do it for $300, and then there are people who can do it for $30,000.
Don’t worry about that extreme unless you come from that kind of money. It depends on what you are working with. Do you have a home, children, what state do you live in? What are you trying to accomplish? Trusts for your children, or wanting to plan for yourself? Talking to an estate planner will help you assess your current situation and give you an estimate on how much that could cost.
Estate planning is not only for death, however as we live longer, but the likelihood of being incapacitated is also higher. We all know of or have heard of someone who has passed away unexpectedly or becomes disabled unexpectedly. The beauty of where you are now, you can start by getting your health care directives set up. That is not something that is going to be very costly, that way if you are in an accident you have your wishes written down.
There is no time that we know when it is too late to do that.
Think about it from a business perspective, you have a student who wants to buy a course or product. What is the transformation that they will go through after? You are showing your value. It is an investment. It’s not so much what you are paying today, it’s what you are paying tomorrow. What you are paying to make sure that it is properly done and protecting those who matter or causes that matter to you.
It goes back to what it is for. What happens if you pass away, to all that you built. Do you want the state to decide who that goes to or do you want to put that down on paper and manage that? Estate planning allows you to plan for your financial decisions. You are leaving a lasting legacy behind. Or just leaving it?
Think about all that you have. Even if you just start with your health. If something happens to you, who is your person? Are you assuming that it is your mom, unfortunately, that is not how it works. You can’t just say well if I am sick, my mom knows what to do. She doesn’t have the right to access your records unless there is some sort of HIPAA authorization. Even more so when you are single you have to put down your wishes especially when it comes to your health.
Then when it comes to owning stuff, single people own homes, cars, and own bank accounts. That automatically doesn’t go to someone. If you don’t do anything, they are going to give it to no one.
Estate planning is so important to make sure that your agency is intact and your wishes are honored.
A beneficiary designation is when you think of certain accounts like life insurance, 401k, or b. Those are considered non-probate assets so they pass outside your will. One way you could set up your estate, if everything you own is in a bank account, you don’t have any other assets, you can designate a beneficiary to receive it. Upon proving your death they will get a check for that money.
If you are a parent and list your spouse or parent as your primary beneficiary and then their child as the contingent beneficiary. The problem with that is that if that child is truly minor, there has to be some sort of mechanism for them to receive that money and help manage it on their behalf.
It’s important that your beneficiaries are who you want them to be.
A last will and testament is part of an estate plan. Your estate plan is going to include a last will and testament or a trust. It also includes a financial power of attorney or could be called a property power of attorney, that’s a document that will state your wishes for who will help you with financial decisions. It also includes a medical power of attorney that includes your health decision. Then it will include your HIPAA, the authorization for people to be given information about you. It will include something called a living will, which a lot of people think is called a last will and testament but is more known as an advanced healthcare directive.
There are other documents depending on your state. An estate plan is a plan for all of your decisions, for all your stuff, and for yourself. The estate plan is like an umbrella and a will is one of the things under it.
The person who laid the foundation for the cathedrals in Europe knew that they would never see the flooring put in.
You can see what you can now to make things easier for future generations and not ruin them. The last thing you want to do is leave a million dollars to someone who is 22. Many 22-year-olds are not capable of handling that kind of cash. There are ways to plan for that, that last a long time, it can grow, and bless future generations that come after them. That is what you are doing. It’s not abnormal or morbid to think about that in your 20’s, 30’s and 40’s. It’s not too late to be in your 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s. There are still things you can do to leave a lasting legacy.
What do you want your legacy to be? This is a tool for setting that in place. This investment is one worth making. If you think about it, whether it is your kids, siblings, cousins, or a cause you care deeply about, you can impact that. Even if you won’t be alive to see it.
You have to be curious. And stay curious. That is how you problem solve, that’s how you learn different things. That is how you consider a different perspective, even if you disagree with it, just hear it out. What if it is a new way of doing things. Challenge those limiting beliefs.
Make decisions differently. Maybe you want to see what happens if you go here and do this instead. Take that risk, be curious and go explore.
Stay curious, whatever that means to you. Whether you are raised a certain way doesn’t mean that is the only way it is. Having curiosity allows you to expand the possibilities and maybe change your mind.
The Heart University Website Templates: www.theheartuniversity.com/website-templates
The Posing Minor: www.theheartuniversity.com/posing-minor
Follow along with Iffy:
Law Firm Website: www.willsintexas.com
Personal Website: www.iffyibekwe.com
www.instagram.com/iffyibekweesq
www.instagram.com/ibekwelawpllc
If you want to connect with us and other listeners in the Heart and Hustle community join our Facebook group here.
Follow along:
www.instagram.com/mrslindseyroman
www.instagram.com/theheartuniversity
WASSUP FRIENDS. We’re Evie + Lindsey, co-founders of this wild partayyy called The Heart University. Our goal is to empower entrepreneurs to kick freaking BUTT in their businesses, dive down into the heart of their why and how, and serve you with all possible tools you’ll need to up-level your business game and CRUSH those goals of yours.
Whether you’re coming to an in-person workshop, joining our online course, or soaking up all the strategies via this blog or our podcast, we’re STOKED you’re here + can’t wait to see you out there kicking butt.
meet l&e
keep reading
GET OUR 'TOP 5 APPS WE USE FOR INSTA
GRAB OUR FREE GUIDE BELOW ON THE TOP 5 APPS WE USE IN CONJUNCTION WITH INSTAGRAM TO UP LEVEL OUR INSTA GAME! TRUST US, YOU'LL BE A PRO IN NO TIME!
ARE YOU RIDING FRONT SEAT ON THE INSTAGRAM STRUGGLE BUS LATELY?
Be the first to comment