August is National Leave a Legacy Month

It is a fact that August is National Leave a Legacy Month. And while much of the articles you will see ask if what you will contribute to the world before you pass, my scope or paintbrush will not be so broad. My experience and an estate planner and insurance agent does not allow me to see broader than that for my clients or prospective clients. I ask my clients, what are your goals beyond retirement? What legacy do you want to leave behind for your family's generations?
It really doesn't matter what side of the isle you are on when it comes to politics, both spend money they don't have. With regards to leaving behind a legacy, surely you don't want to leave behind a legacy of debt for your family and especially dependents.
When a client sits down with me and as we advance into fact finding about their lives, goals and dreams I insist if there should be a balance of debt to be left behind, lets carry enough extra life insurance to cover that debt. What I feel makes me unique as an estate planner, is for the first part of my consultation, I listen. I don't make notes, don't check my phone or emails and most importantly I do not think what I can sell this couple!
If an estate planner listens carefully, the goals, the dreams and financial situation will equate to what they would like to leave as their legacy. It is difficult to have a discussion concerning a person's mortality, but it is much better to discuss this with the client than with the family when it is too late.

You've worked hard over the years to accumulate wealth, and you probably find it comforting to know that after your death the assets you leave behind will continue to be a source of support for your family, friends, and the causes that are important to you. But to ensure that your legacy reaches your heirs as you intend, you must make the proper arrangements now. There are four basic ways to leave a legacy: (1) by will, (2) by trust, (3) by beneficiary designation, and (4) by joint ownership arrangements.
Despite the loss the family is experiencing, which is tough enough, but how you be remembered fiscally? My goal is to give them as good of a good life if not better than when I was alive. Quality of life for my family is vital for me. A client should leave his or her family to grieve only for the loss, not how to make the mortgage next month.
With August being National Leave a Legacy Month it is much more than how the world will perceive you. It is simply about how will you leave your mark on your family financially, once that day comes.