Our Frequently Asked Questions
Attorney Doreen Seamon answers important questions right here. Learn about your estate planning foundation, long-term care, is it too late to plan for your loved ones, veterans’ benefits, revocable living trusts (RLT), and how you can set up your complimentary, no obligation, consultation.
- 01. What is a Estate Plan Foundation
- 02. How Do I Handle Long Term Care?
- 03. Is it too late?
- 04. What are my Benefits as a Veteran?
- 05. What is a Revocable Living Trust?
- 06. How much does a Consultation Cost?
Do any of these topics touch on a situation with you or a loved one?
If you want to learn more about any of these topics discussed or have another issue dealing with a topic not covered on these web buttons.
Please call our office at 304.554.2900.
01. What is a Estate Plan Foundation?
An estate planning foundation includes the basic documents every estate plan should have: a Last Will & Testament; a General Durable Power of Attorney; a Medical Power of Attorney; a Living Will; and a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Release. In addition to providing the Last Will & Testament as a tool to manage your estate when you pass away, your estate planning foundation helps your loved ones manage your financial and medical decisions in case you have a future incapacity or disability. Every adult should have an estate planning foundation – regardless of their age.
02. How Do I Handle Long Term Care?
How you should handle long-term care depends on many factors such as your stage of life, assets, income, and your life expectancy. Our team evaluates these factors along with our client's goals to determine the best plan. As you can imagine, each client's plan of action can vary considerably! We can help in a crisis situation, but you definitely have more options when you plan early - before a crisis.
03. Is it too late?
In a crisis where a client hasn’t done the appropriate planning, there is still usually some benefits to estate planning even during a crisis. Obviously, it’s best to plan prior to a physical or medical crisis so that your decisions can be handled according to your wishes as much as possible.
04. What are my Benefits as a Veteran?
The benefit that my office works with is the Improved Disability Pension (aka the Aid and Attendance Benefit). It can be complicated to navigate the qualifications, but our office offers a telephone consultation to help you determine if you might qualify. Basically, to qualify you or your spouse must be a wartime veteran, you must be experiencing significant regular unreimbursed medical expenses in comparison to your monthly income; and your assets must be within a VA recommended limit.
05. What is a Revocable Living Trust?
There is a lot of information on various types of trusts, but a Revocable Living Trust can help you avoid probate and help your loved ones easily help you manage your finances if you eventually need some help. It is a wonderful estate planning tool that can be an important part of an estate planning foundation.
06. How much does a Consultation Cost?
Our office offers a complimentary (free) one hour consultation. Our first time consultation includes an estate planner’s review either with either the attorney or our Office Manager. Prior to this consultation, we will send you an Estate Planning Worksheet which helps us get an overview of your goals, your financial situation, and your health. In order to maximize you free consultation, you should complete this worksheet as completely as possible because that will be the basis of our review together.