Even just a few years ago, estate planning was a matter handled in the brick and mortar world for our assets, which existed in the brick and mortar world. However, so many of us now have assets that exist out there in cyber space like online businesses, bank accounts, stock accounts, etc.

Without the knowledge that these things exist and the passwords to access them, they will be lost to our heirs unless we include them in our estate plan and give the information for accessing them to our executors. Our computers can also have more value than just the value of the machine if things are stored on it.

A professional journalist or photographer for example may have articles or pictures stored that can be sold. Nobody, however, will know how to access these things unless we leave instructions for finding them after our inevitable death.

Laws covering digital assets lag far behind and will continue to do so for years to come so the best thing we can do is take care of them with our estate planners, executors and in our wills.

First, create separate email accounts for your online business and your personal business and make sure that your executor has the passwords to access your business email account. If you have sensitive personal information stored online, you can arrange for your executor to delete it upon your death.

Doing something as simple as writing down the information about your online business, bank accounts, stock accounts, etc. and including passwords, putting it into an envelope and marking it, “to be opened only after my death”, and giving it to your executor could solve the problem.

Make provisions in your will to renew URL’s after your death. You wouldn’t want your heirs to lose myfamilybiz.com because nobody knew it was time to renew your subscription and, also, make provisions to pay your suppliers and/or employees for your online business.

When you go to an estate planner you need to think about what it is that you really want this estate plan to say about you.Choosing the right estate planner is vital to this process. When you first meet with a potential estate planner, ask him what he thinks his job description is where you are concerned. If he says, “To save you as much in taxes as I can” keep looking. This isn’t the planner for you.

The Mayo clinic says that the real end-of-life questions are:

• What is the meaning of life?
• Did I make a difference in the world?
• What is my legacy to my family?

When you approach making your estate plan with these questions uppermost in your mind, you will make the estate plan that is right for you.

Tip: Avoid lawyers and estate planners who define estate planning as saving taxes. Look for a professional who is not only technically proficient, but who also understands the human nature of estate planning and will consider your life wishes before tax saving strategies.

The estate planner you choose needs to be able to focus on your goals. It is certainly the responsibility of an estate planner to discuss tax effects of decisions we make, but their first duty is to understand what our desires are and then guide us to the best decisions to achieve our goals with the tax repercussions a distant second. Taxes are too often the overriding factor in planning and we want planners who focus on our legacies.

Our estate plans are what will be left for our heirs…and our heirs are our families and friends. We want them to remember who we were and what we thought was most important… not by how much we paid or avoided in taxes.

Estate planners who charge little or nothing for their services should be avoided. It is most likely that they are making money for themselves by earning commissions on the investment products they recommend.

The estate planner you choose should be objective and offer more than just investment strategies and financial planning advice. You should ask questions before choosing your estate planner and the answers should plain to you…no beating around the proverbial bush.

Ask if he or she has worked with clients like yourself. i.e. If you are a teacher, has he/she worked with teachers? Has he/she worked with people who have your income level? Has he/she worked with people who share your goals? You are looking for an estate planner who has the experience you need to tap into.

Ask if he or she keeps up with relevant legislation, such as income tax laws, family law, and changes in probate regulations. These things change and the changes will affect the best course you should pursue over time.
Ask how he or she sets fees and earns income. Does he/she sell life insurance, mutual funds or other investment products? If this estate planner does, keep looking. You want objectivity.

Tell him or her that you want to set time lines and ask how he/she can help you meet those deadlines.

Ask if he or she can refer you to other professionals if the need arises… lawyers and accountants for example. Your estate plan is based upon many things that your attorney or your accountant handles for you. The estate planner needs to be able to work with and consider information provided by these other professionals so that your estate plan is based on your needs and goals and changed as your situation changes.
Choose carefully and wisely.

That one really IS a “no brainer” and I hate that term. But think about it. In return for paying your rent, you get a place to live and a receipt.

In return for making a house payment, you get a place to live and acquire some personal worth in the form of equity. Buying a house is not out of the question for most people any longer.

The largest obstacle between renters and owning their own homes in the past has been the huge down payment requirements. While renters slowly squirrel away money, property values and mortgage rates climb and climb. Many people have spent years saving for that down payment without making a lot of progress but times have changed.
There are a lot of home loan programs available and down payments are less important now than they used to be. Many require only one to five percent of the down payment to come from the borrower’s own funds and some home loan products don’t require a down payment at all.

Of course a 20 percent down payment means that private mortgage insurance won’t be required but saving that much might be more of a challenge than a borrower can over come.

A loan consultant can help to determine how much house a borrower should buy and what loan product would best suit their individual needs.

For low-income families there are non-profit organizations dedicated to affordable housing and offer payment assistance programs. In the early 1990s federal housing laws were changed to allow the non-profit groups to help low-income families fund down payments, closing costs and other upfront cash requirements.

The key for potential home buyers is to get as much information as possible prior to buying a home.

They can be sure to buy a property they can afford, improve their credit history so that they can get a better interest rate, and start to build a long term wealth potential for their family.

The economy is tough right now, to say the least. We almost hate to open our mutual fund statements or go online to check the current value of our stocks and bonds because they seem to be headed straight down.

There is one asset, however, that may be worth more than you think it is and that is your life insurance policy.
A life insurance policy is an asset that can be turned into cash. There is now a secondary life insurance market in today’s marketplace.

Institutionally funded provider companies purchase policies from seniors that they no longer want or need.
We, as seniors, can go through what is called a “life settlement valuation” to determine the value of our policies.

This is not for everyone but it could be right for you.

A life settlement only works if the insured person is 65 years old or older and the minimum face value of the policy is $100,000.00 … and some companies will only purchase policies with face values of $250,000.00.

Men who are 75 and women who are 78 and own policies with face values of one to 10 million dollars are more likely to get solid purchase offers.

You will need to verify that the policies are in effect, assess the reasons why the policies were purchased and then decide if the reasons are still valid, hire a licensed life settlement broker and then evaluate the offers that are received.

This whole process usually takes 4 to 12 weeks depending upon the complexity of the policy and medical history of the insured.

It takes all of 30 minutes to complete the forms and about an hour to be educated to be able to convert this previously overlooked asset into cash. That might be an hour and a hold well spent.