In recent article published Ron Lieber of the New York Times, he discusses financial pitfalls for the recently widowed to avoid when their spouse or life-partner dies. The article does an excellent job explaining the financial worries caused by a spouse’s death.
As he astutely points out, women tend to live longer than men and it is often women who have to make difficult financial decisions once their husband is no longer living. Common financial decisions that must be made upon a spouse’s death are related to insurance, taxes, funeral expenses, bank accounts, and other financial decisions that were normally handled by the husband or two decision-makers. In addition to the financial pressures on the recently widowed are emotional issues, such as the grief or denial, which are caused by the death of a loved one.
As I have discussed, preparing for a loved one’s death involves proper estate planning with an Minnesota estate planning lawyer. Creating a Will or Trust is something that must be done prior to a life partner’s death. There are laws in every state which dictate what must happen with a person’s estate assets and debts upon their death and a widow is certainly more vulnerable to financial pitfalls without estate planning.
Additionally, estate or retirement planning entails making documents such as durable-power-of-attorney so that if one spouse becomes incapacitated – either mentally or physically – the other spouse can make financial decisions for both of them. Likewise, a durable health-care-power-of-attorney should be made so that one spouse can make health care decisions on the behalf of the other if he or she becomes ill.
There is no way to avoid the grief associated with a loved one’s death; however, the financial problems caused by a spouse’s death can be avoided if a person prepares for such an event.
