A person's estate is the accumulation of assets over a lifetime. It is important that your life’s work is distributed the way you want it to the important people in your life.  Planning your estate can help maximize the amount of your personal wealth and assets that are passed down to your loved ones, while minimizing taxes and other financial burdens to your family after your death, according to our Oklahoma Estate Law Center.

 

Scenario: I’m a sixty-seven year old widow in good health, but there is a family history of both heart disease and cancer. I live alone in my house which is paid for and is worth about $200,000. I have a checking account I keep about $10,000 in at all times, monthly social security checks of $2,000, a monthly pension checks as a retired teacher of $2,000, a money market account with about $1 million (an inheritance from my deceased sister), a couple of CDs, $50,000 each, some GM stock worth about $100,000 and an IRA with about $400,000 (rolled over from my deceased husband’s job). I also have a couple of mineral leases that I receive small monthly checks from, but I understand that the oil company plans to drill more wells. I also own a Cadillac which I drive to church, several bridge games every week, and to do my personal errands. I like to travel and take two vacations per year. I want everything to go equally to my two wonderful adult children who are married. Each of my children have three children so I have six grandchildren.