The Eagle Has Landed

     In a few months we will celebrate what is perhaps mankind’s greatest single achievement- the Apollo moon landing. Some of us who are old enough to have seen it “live” will remember the grainy black and white images with the hushed voices of the newsmen (they didn’t have newswomen back then) describing the scene, and then silence and then Neil Armstrong’s voice coming from ¼  million  miles away, “One small step for man- one giant leap for mankind.”

     Reporters later asked him what he thought about as he sat atop the Saturn V rocket, waiting for liftoff… In the nonchalant manner of most pilots, he said “I realized that I was sitting on a million pounds of high explosive, timed to go off at precise intervals and all of it was built by the lowest government bidder!” He knew that if any problems developed, no one would know until it was too late to fix them. With the low bidder he got a great price but at what cost?

     I am no astronaut and I don’t even play one on TV. I am an attorney who works with families going through Probate court, the court that handles estates of those who have died. Too often I see situations where someone has gotten a great price on a will from a website or an office supply store and that bargain-priced will is now costing the family time, money and heartache. It was cheap but no one anticipated the problems it would create. Just like the lowest bidder, the price was great but at what cost?

     Another situation I see is when a person has died and never bothered with having a will at all. They assumed that they didn’t have anything, or that everyone would get along and know what each person wanted, or that banks and financial institutions would simply release accounts to the spouse or next-of-kin without needing anything more than a simple request. They might have even assumed that paying for a will was a luxury that they could do without, a needless expense, a waste of money.

     Without exception, dying without a will is more expensive than dying with a will in place. It costs more to probate an estate without a will, it takes longer, it requires a bond to be purchased and it requires frequent hearings in the probate court, each one also requiring the services of an attorney. All of this can be avoided by having a will in place. Without a will no one will ever know your true intentions. You saved some money but at what cost?

     So why put your loved ones through needless expense, delay and heartache? It isn’t expensive to set up your plan. It will save your estate more than it will cost. It will make your final affairs run smoothly. It will give you and your family peace of mind. And that is what estate planning is all about- peace of mind.

     Bill Nolan is a local attorney who focuses his practice in the area of Elder law, which means that he helps seniors and their families navigate the perilous shoals of Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, Veteran’s benefits, nursing home issues and the end of life decisions that come with age.

     He can be reached at Nolan Elder Law, LLC, 1232 Blue Ridge Blvd, Bham, AL 35226, , 205/823-8916.