Online Class: Estate Planning
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11Lessons
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12Exams &
Assignments -
7Hours
average time -
0.7CEUs
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Video Audit
Available
Course Description
Navigating the Landscape of Estate Planning: Protecting Your Legacy
Once regarded as a domain exclusive to the opulent, estate planning has evolved beyond being just a buzzword for the affluent. The contemporary world, with its intricate web of financial and personal relationships, has brought to the fore the critical importance of estate planning for one and all.
It's a simple truth: every individual, regardless of the size or nature of their assets, desires to have some control over what happens to their possessions, assets, and, most importantly, their health decisions when they no longer can. However, misconceptions abound, with many mistakenly believing that a basic life insurance policy or a verbal agreement with family members is enough. Such an approach, sadly, leaves many aspects of one's legacy at the mercy of legal systems and, in some cases, the state.
Consider a hypothetical scenario: James, a diligent saver throughout his life, assumes his life insurance policy will cover everything after his passing. He has verbally expressed his wishes regarding his assets to his children. However, on his unexpected demise, disputes arise between family members about the house he owned, his vintage car collection, and his hard-earned savings. Without a written, legally-backed estate plan, James's wishes remain largely unenforceable.
Similarly, in the domain of medical decisions, imagine the anguish of a family, unsure of a loved one's desires concerning life support or medical interventions during a terminal illness. An appropriate estate plan, encompassing a Living Will, can articulate these wishes clearly, preventing such heart-wrenching dilemmas.
It's easy to understand why many shy away from estate planning. Addressing one's mortality and making decisions regarding assets posthumously can be daunting. Others might feel rushed to "get it done" without proper contemplation, a move riddled with potential oversights and mistakes. Yet, the true essence of estate planning is neither morbid nor a hurried checkbox exercise. At its heart, it's a thoughtful process of ensuring that your life's work, values, and desires continue to influence and benefit your loved ones and causes close to your heart.
Course Highlights:
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The Basics of Estate Planning: Dive deep into the essentials of estate planning, understanding its significance beyond just the distribution of wealth.
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Power of Attorney: Grasp the pivotal role and implications of designating a power of attorney – someone to make decisions when you're unable to.
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Crafting Your Will: Navigate the intricacies of establishing a Will in Testament, ensuring that your possessions are allocated as per your desires.
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The Living Will: Engage with the nuances of a Living Will, emphasizing your medical preferences in situations where you might be unable to communicate them.
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Trust Funds & Charitable Giving: Learn the mechanisms of setting up trust funds and the rewarding process of integrating philanthropy into your estate plans.
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Asset Inventory: Acquire strategies to methodically catalog your assets, an indispensable step in the planning process.
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Special Considerations for Singles: Delve into unique requirements and considerations vital for individuals without immediate familial dependencies.
Indeed, the process of estate planning can seem overwhelming, but with the right guidance, it becomes a seamless journey of safeguarding your legacy. This course is meticulously crafted to illuminate this journey. By its conclusion, you'll possess a comprehensive understanding of how to ensure your desires, both material and moral, are upheld.
By embracing the knowledge within this course, you're not merely planning for an inevitable end. Instead, you're crafting a legacy, a lasting message of your values, desires, and love for those you leave behind. Thus, with your future affairs set in stone, you can redirect your energies towards the beautiful present, living each day to its zenith.
Course Lessons
Lesson 1: Estate Planning Basics
This lesson will give you a basic understanding of what estate planning is. It outlines the essential tools of estate planning, each of which will be covered in greater detail in later lessons.Lesson 2: Why Estate Planning is Important for Everyone
Skimping on planning now could cause great distress and difficulty for your family and friends later on. In this lesson we will talk about why estate planning is important for everyone.Lesson 3: The Major Elements of Estate Planning
By being aware of the major elements of estate planning and the sub-categories of estate planning, you can start building your plan with clear direction.Lesson 4: Taking Inventory of Your Assets
A large part of planning for the distribution of your assets is taking inventory of what you have. This is such an important process that there are several computer software programs devoted to this task alone.Lesson 5: Does Everyone Need a Will? Yes!--Here's Why
This lesson will address some of the excuses people use to avoid making a will and the reasons why those excuses are not valid; it will also discuss what happens if you have a will and what could happen if you do not.Lesson 6: Estate Planning and Tax Facts
Whether you decide to use a lawyer or CPA or not, you can educate yourself on current tax laws and use this lesson to get a good basic understanding of how to save yourself unnecessary estate taxes.Lesson 7: What You Need to Know About Trusts
There are many types of trusts that can be used in estate planning for a variety of reasons and benefits. In this lesson we will discuss what trusts are and how they are different.Lesson 8: Speaking to Loved Ones and Friends about Your Estate Plan
Talking to loved ones about your estate plan before you die will clarify things and help avoid any misunderstandings among those you love.Lesson 9: Charitable Trusts
Charitable trusts are not only a wonderful way to support organizations doing excellent work for a cause you believe in, but also a preferred way to avoid paying over inflated, estate taxes to the government.Lesson 10: Estate Planning for Singles
This last lesson is devoted to estate planning for the particular needs of those who are currently unmarried, not in a serious long-term relationship and/or intend to remain unmarried.Lesson 11: Course Conclusion
We have included a sample estate planning questionnaire from the American Bar Association's guide to Wills and estates. This form offers insight into what basic information an attorney would ask you when starting or creating an estate plan for you and you
Learning Outcomes
- Describe why estate planning is important for everyone.
- Describe the major elements of estate planning.
- Take inventory of your assets.
- Describe why a will is important.
- Summarize estate planning and tax facts.
- Describe what trusts are.
- Describe charitable trusts.
- Demonstrate mastery of lesson content at levels of 70% or higher.
Additional Course Information
- Document Your Lifelong Learning Achievements
- Earn an Official Certificate Documenting Course Hours and CEUs
- Verify Your Certificate with a Unique Serial Number Online
- View and Share Your Certificate Online or Download/Print as PDF
- Display Your Certificate on Your Resume and Promote Your Achievements Using Social Media
Student Testimonials
- "I truly enjoyed this course and its presentation of videos." -- Wanda G.
- "Thank you, greatly appreciated the course and the opportunity to do it." -- Barbara K.
- "Great course, gave me lots of useful ideas, thanks for creating these courses." -- Ilana C.
- "Great instructor. I learned a lot!" -- Amy F.
- "Overall, this course took the mystery out of 'estate planning'. It clarified the whole process, listing the basic areas of estate planning, and broken down into the specific groups. It made me feel as though estate planning is something that I could understand much more easily!" -- Marianne C.
- "I found this class very useful with a very compassiate instructor, but for me this class was very emotional." -- Ellen L.
- "The course was very helpful and the instructor responded to my needs just on time." -- Ana P.
- "Excellent, well organized. The overall course in general, very informative and gives you things to explore that an average person wouldn't think to." -- Marjorie C.
- "All of it was helpful." -- Janet C.
- "What was most helpful was the lesson on trusts, and the assignments were compelling to the student to make progress in their own estate planning." -- Kelly C.
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