Creating a comprehensive estate plan is one of the most important and meaningful gifts you can give to your loved ones and to yourself over the course of your life. The prospect of meeting with an estate planning attorney for the first time, however, can be a bit daunting. For this reason, people often procrastinate when it comes to estate planning. If you have made the wise choice to get started on your estate planning journey, knowing the answers to some common questions may help you feel better prepared for your meeting. Although the precise questions you ask will depend on your unique goals and circumstances, the attorneys at Legacy Care Law Firm provide answers to some commonly asked estate planning consultation questions.
- Do I Really Need an Estate Plan If I Am Not Wealthy? Yes. Although tax planning and sophisticated estate planning can be essential for high-net-worth individuals, the need for an estate plan is not limited to people with substantial wealth. Regardless of the value of your estate, your estate plan can determine who receives your property, who administers your estate, and who should care for your minor children if something happens to you. Your plan can also authorize trusted people to manage financial and healthcare matters if you become incapacitated. Without an estate plan, state law may determine who inherits probate property that does not otherwise have a beneficiary or other mechanism controlling its transfer. The people selected under intestate succession laws may or may not be the people you would have chosen.
- What Documents Should Be Included in My New Hampshire Estate Plan? There is no single set of estate planning documents that is appropriate for everyone, and your plan should be tailored to your unique goals and circumstances. Nevertheless, the average estate plan includes a Last Will and Testament along with documents addressing financial and healthcare decision-making during incapacity. Depending on your circumstances, your plan might also incorporate one or more trusts that can address a variety of concerns, including probate avoidance, asset protection, special needs planning, and business succession.
- What Is the Difference Between a Will and a Trust? A Last Will and Testament provides instructions regarding the distribution of property controlled by your Will after your death. You can also use your Will to nominate the person you want to administer your probate estate and, if you have minor children, nominate the individual you would want to serve as Guardian. A trust is a separate legal arrangement through which a Trustee holds and administers property for designated beneficiaries according to instructions contained in the trust agreement. While a trust can also be used to distribute your assets after death, a trust can also accomplish a wide range of estate planning objectives, including probate avoidance, tax planning, special needs planning, charitable planning, and even pet planning. People often include both a Will and one or more trusts in a comprehensive estate plan.
- Do I Need a Revocable Living Trust? Not everyone needs a Revocable Living Trust, but it can be a valuable estate planning tool under the right circumstances. When you create a Revocable Living Trust, you may serve as the initial Trustee and continue controlling the assets transferred into the trust as long as you remain capable of doing so. If you become unable to manage trust property, the Successor Trustee you selected can step in and administer those assets according to your instructions. A properly funded Revocable Living Trust can also allow trust assets to pass to beneficiaries without probate following your death.
- Can My Estate Avoid Probate? It is often possible to structure an estate plan so that some or all estate assets transfer outside of probate. A Revocable Living Trust is one commonly used probate avoidance tool, but it is not the only option. Joint ownership with survivorship rights, beneficiary designations, and certain payable-on-death or transfer-on-death arrangements may also allow assets to pass directly to another person without the need to go through probate. If probate assets do remain in your estate, using a small estate alternative to formal probate may be an option that can reduce the time and cost associated with formal probate.
- Who Should I Choose as My Executor or Trustee? Choosing fiduciary roles for your estate plan is one of the most important parts of estate planning; yet it is often an after-thought. The Executor named in your Will is responsible for administering your probate estate while a Trustee administers assets held in trust according to the trust agreement. Although people often choose their oldest child, another relative, or close friend because they trust that individual, trust alone should not determine your choice. Consider whether the person is organized, financially responsible, available, and capable of communicating effectively with beneficiaries and professional advisors.
- What Happens If I Become Incapacitated? A comprehensive estate plan should address incapacity as carefully as it addresses death. If illness, dementia, an accident, or another medical condition prevents you from managing your affairs, someone may need authority to handle financial matters and make healthcare decisions for you. Without appropriate advance planning, your family could face additional legal complications when they are already dealing with a medical crisis. Your incapacity plan may include a Durable Power of Attorney authorizing an Agent to handle financial and legal matters along with advance directives that address medical decision-making and communicate your treatment preferences. If you have a Revocable Living Trust, your successor Trustee may also be able to assume responsibility for managing property held by the trust.
- How Can I Protect an Inheritance Intended for My Children? Naming a minor child as a beneficiary is rarely a good idea because a minor child cannot legally inherit directly from your estate. Likewise, bequeathing assets directly to an adult child is not always the best strategy if that child has a history of poor financial decisions, creditors, divorce-related concerns, substance abuse, or other problems that could put the inheritance at risk. Using a trust to manage and distribute the assets can provide additional protection by allowing you to determine how and when assets are distributed. Trust planning can be particularly important when a Beneficiary has special needs given that an outright inheritance may affect eligibility for certain means-tested government assistance programs.
- What Happens to My Estate Plan If I Have a Blended Family? Blended families frequently require more careful planning because the interests of a surviving spouse and children from a prior relationship may not always align. Specialized trust planning can help through provisions that allow a surviving spouse to benefit from assets during life while preserving remaining property for children after the spouse’s death.
- Will My Estate Have to Pay Estate Taxes? Tax planning should always be evaluated as part of the estate planning process, particularly if you have substantial wealth. As of 2026, the federal gift and estate tax lifetime exemption is at an all-time high of $15 million, but that exemption could be reduced at any time. In addition, although New Hampshire does not impose a state estate tax, Massachusetts is one of several states that do collect state-level estate taxes. Moreover, income taxes, capital gains taxes, retirement-account taxation, and tax consequences associated with particular trusts or transfers may all affect planning decisions.
- How Often Should I Update My Estate Plan? Estate planning should always be viewed as an ongoing process rather than a transaction that ends when documents are signed. Reviewing your estate plan every three to five years as a matter of routine is the best way to make sure that the plan works as intended. Events, such as marriage, divorce, death, and the birth or adoption of a child, should prompt an immediate review and revision of your estate plan.
Can We Help You with Commonly Asked Estate Planning Consultation Questions?
For more information, please join us for an upcoming FREE seminar. If you have additional concerns about commonly asked estate planning consultation questions, contact our estate planning attorneys in our North Andover, Woburn, and Beverly offices at (978) 969-0331. Our Salem and Nashua, New Hampshire office can be reached at (603) 894-4141.
Attorney Daniel A. DeBruyckere has been practicing law in New Hampshire and Massachusetts since 1998, and has helped hundreds of clients with their estate planning and elder care issues. He is very well respected in the area of estate planning, probate, trust administration, elder law issues, and business planning Read More!
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