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How to Handle the Death of a Loved One
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Issue 10,
by Milan Madhani, CPA & Vimal Madhani, MST, EA
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June 6th, 2016
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How to Handle the Death of a Loved One
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With the ever-changing landscape of taxes, it is growing increasingly difficult to understand how legislation affects clients and could possibly impact their financial future.
As a leader in the financial services industry for over 30 years, we get it. That’s why HD Vest Financial Services® is constantly seeking ways to share the latest knowledge we acquire with you. We’ve created the Taxes & Investments: Timely and Timeless Strategies
Series to share timely information and provide our Advisors and their clients with practical information and ideas they can build on.
Expected or not, the death of a loved one marks a very difficult and stressful time for the ones they leave behind. There are many issues that must be addressed immediately and
others that can be addressed in the coming days or weeks. The following is a list of some of these items. Keep in mind this list is not all encompassing, but will give loved ones a place to start. Responsibility for the various actions can be divided among
family members and close friends of the deceased.
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Contact immediate family. Keeping key family members updated is important
and offers those involved an opportunity to comfort one another. Depending on the number of family members, it may be a good idea to ask for help with this task.
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Explore wishes for organ donation. This is often a very difficult topic
to broach, but arrangements need to be made almost immediately upon death to ensure the viability of donated organs. If it isn’t clear what the deceased wanted, check their driver’s license or their advanced health care directive.
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Arrange the care of dependents and pets. If the deceased had any dependent
children or pets make arrangements for their care until permanent plans are put into place.
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Begin funeral or memorial arrangements. It may be helpful to get other
family members involved if the decedent did not make their wishes known, or if the decedent made an unreasonable request. Factors to consider:
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What did the deceased want? Were there any written or verbal wishes made?
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Did the deceased prepay any funeral costs?
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Is the deceased eligible for VA benefits? Veterans, service members and their dependents can be buried in a national cemetery for free. If the decision
is made to bury them elsewhere, the estate may be eligible for a burial allowance.
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What can you afford? Contact the funeral home to determine costs.
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What’s realistic?
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What will help the family most with the grieving process?
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Submit an obituary to the deceased’s local paper. If you wish to have
charitable donations made in lieu of flowers you can make that known in the obituary.
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Call the deceased’s employer if he or she was working. Notify them of
the death and request information about benefits and any pay due. Ask whether there was a life-insurance policy through the company.
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Track any donations, flowers or cards received so acknowledgments can be sent after the funeral.
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Secure the deceased’s physical property, i.e. jewelry, artwork, furniture, etc.
It is the executor’s responsibility to have these assets appraised, inventoried and filed with the probate court within 90 days following death. This will be a very difficult task if the articles have already been distributed.
Resources:
AARP-
www.aarp.org
Caring Connections-
www.caringinfo.org
Social Security Administration-
www.ssa.gov
Veteran’s Affairs-
www.va.gov
Consumer Reports-
www.consumerreports.org
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At Sentigent Financial, we understand the importance of retiring in financial dignity. We are prepared to help you find retirement solutions, such as IRAs, and look for opportunities
that help ensure you don’t outlive your retirement income. Whether you’re 10 or 40 years away from retirement, there is a plan that meets you where you are.
If you already have a retirement plan in place, we can do an analysis to ensure that it’s the best fit for you based on your goals and that you’re socking away enough money to
retire comfortably. After all, we know he full scope of your financial picture, which makes us equipped to address your retirement needs holistically. Plus, we are backed by HD Vest Retirement Specialists who provide technical support and specialized training
to further ensure you are paired with the best solutions possible.
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