Asset protection lawyers at Clarity Legal Group can help you evaluate the risks to your wealth and determine what steps you can take to keep your money and property as safe as possible. You work hard to build a nest egg hoping to provide for yourself as a senior and to leave a financial legacy to loved ones after you pass away. 
Typically, people are aware that risks to the security of their assets are out there, but do not focus on them until too late. I became an estate planning attorney with the hope that effective, regular communications with clients about their affairs could help them avoid problems, keep out of court, and achieve their financial and family goals.
It remains a challenge in the legal professional that no one wants to pay a lawyer for a conversation about a problem which may never occur. At Clarity Legal Group, we have organized our practice to create as many opportunities as possible to raise issues for clients while we are “off the clock”, to bundle services in flat fee arrangements so clients can raise with us a broad variety of issues relating to their affairs without increasing legal fees, and to cause our clients to see our attorneys as trusted advisors who can be counted on to give focused and valuable advise when “on the clock”.
What can you do to protect against the potential risks to the assets you’ve worked so hard for? You owe it to yourself to do everything possible to identify these risks and get the right help in mitigating and minimizing them. Start by asking the right questions. What are my risks? What tools are available to protect me and how do they work?
Clarity Legal Group will work with you on a personalized risk assessment to make smart use of legal tools to ensure that you reduce the chance of wealth being lost due to unfortunate circumstances. Give us a call to find out what dangers to your assets exist because of your life circumstances. Read on to find out about some of the most common risks to wealth.
Loss Due to Business Ownership
Business owners face unique challenges. Depending on the company’s structure, personal assets could be at risk due to business bankruptcy, the business going badly into debt, or a judgement being entered against the company. Passing a business on to heirs or beneficiaries can also be complicated and there is significant potential for loss without a business succession plan.
Assets Loss Due to High Nursing Home Bills
Many people require nursing home care as they age. The Wall Street Journal indicates a person who has reached the age of 65 has a 40 percent chance of requiring nursing home care.
The costs of nursing home care are astronomical. You could be forced to spend all of your wealth on an assisted living facility or a nursing home or on paying for long-term care at home if you do not get legal help from an experienced elder law attorney to plan to protect your assets. A good rule of thumb is that for someone facing the potentially devastating costs of long term care there are always options to protect assets — even at the last minute — but there are always more options the early you begin to plan.
Loss Due to Lawsuits Against You
There is a risk of loss if you are sued because of an auto accident, accident in your home, or other incident you are held responsible for. You need to make sure you have sufficient insurance coverage so you don’t face a big risk of personal assets being lost. Everyone should consider purchasing an umbrella insurance policy to make sure your assets are safe if you are sued for more than your policy limit.
Loss Due to Incapacity
If you become incapacitated, a delay in the appointment of a guardian or conservator to manage wealth or even the abuse of a power of attorney by someone you trusted could cause losses. Work with an experienced attorney to make sure the right people are named in properly drafted powers of attorney, that a living trust is implemented for asset management where appropriate, and that there are people in place to function as a safety net to make sure your assets and loved ones are protected.
Loss Due to Estate Tax or Capital Gains Tax
When you pass away, if you have a large estate, assets could be lost due to your estate owing a substantial amount of estate tax to the government. An experienced attorney can help you understand if you will be subject to estate tax and can help you to take steps to avoid paying that tax. Even if the estate tax does not apply to you, it is important that you consult with an experience advisor before making lifetime gifts of real estate or investment assets subject to the capital gains tax. Tax issues are rarely simple and it is easy to cost your family or loved ones significant and unnecessary tax liabilities by making lifetime gifts which were better delayed until death.
Loss Due to Irresponsible Heirs
When your assets pass on to loved ones, they could be lost due to divorce, bankruptcy, taxes, or creditor claims if the inheritance is not structured in an appropriate way to protect wealth. Let an experienced estate planning attorney help you to use a asset and divorce protection trust to keep the financial legacy you leave safe for years to come.
Getting Help from Asset Protection Lawyers
As you can see, the risks to your wealth exist during your lifetime and those risks do not disappear after you have passed on. You need to make a comprehensive plan to protect your money and property during your life and after your death.
Asset protection lawyers at Clarity Legal Group can help you to put the right plans in place to keep your wealth safe. To find out more about how our firm can help you, give us a call at 919-484-0012 or contact us online today.
by Mark Costley
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