Dana Carlson Gentry, Esq., Board Certified in Wills, Trusts & Estates
You and your spouse are young professionals with two children under the age of 14 years. Due to your professional status, you are both accumulating money in self- directed IRA’s or in a pension plan (i.e. 401k) related to your employment for your future retirement. Naturally, both of you designate each other as surviving spouse as primary beneficiary. However, what if the unthinkable happens – both of you die unexpectedly. Have you thought about contingent beneficiaries? Most of us want our children to inherit these assets in that event. But if the children are still minors, how should that inheritance be handled? Make sure you ask your IRA custodian or your employer for details on the underlying agreements that govern the IRA or pension plan and request that the custodian or employer allow you to add language which designates an individual custodian that you trust to hold that beneficial interest until your child or children are adults under the Florida Uniform Gifts to Minors Act.
As always, be sure to consult with your income tax advisor as to income tax consequences of such actions. This method can simplify the structure of your estate plan when you are just starting out as a family.
To learn more about using appropriate beneficiary designations for IRA’s and pension plans, or to review your current documents, please contact the Blalock Walters Estate Planning team. We are here to assist.
