If you are the parent of a recent high school graduate, then you should consider getting your child an estate plan.
When our children are young and growing up, we try to teach them how they should act later in life. Every parent knows that the lessons they give to their growing children, can have a tremendous impact on how their children will behave in the decades to come.
It is a heavy burden that most parents take on.
Parents must teach their children how to behave toward others.
Parents have to teach their children about how they should handle money. Parents also have to teach their children about the value of hard work.
It is tempting for some parents to breathe a sigh of relief and think their work is done when their child graduates from high school and becomes an adult. However, there is at least one last thing parents should do as Iris recently discussed in "Estate Planning for Your High School Graduate: That's Right, Your Babies are Adults Now!"
Now that your high school graduate is an adult, he or she needs to have an estate plan.
There are many financial reasons for you to help your child get one now. The most significant is that it will teach your child the importance of estate planning and make them more likely to continue to do it as their lives advance.
However, there is a more immediate practical reason for estate planning.
Once your child is an adult, you are no longer automatically able to make decisions for him or her, should there be a medical emergency.
If your child has an accident while away at college and has a medical emergency, doctors do not have to ask your opinion about what kind of treatment your child should receive. To get around that, you need your child to have an estate plan that includes an advanced medical directive giving you that legal authority.
Reference: Iris (June 27, 2017) "Estate Planning for Your High School Graduate: That's Right, Your Babies are Adults Now!"
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