9 Essential Estate-Planning Documents

Dying without a will leaves your family and heirs with a potential mess. But without one, a probate court will decide where your property goes, which can take months, and sometimes, years. Money that you intended for family and good causes may go to pay lawyers. Additionally, if you have young children, unless you name their guardians in a will, a court will do it. And what about your pets? Their future is up for grabs if your will doesn’t spell it out.

To truly sort out your estate planning, prepare these nine documents, and your heirs will thank you eternally:

1.       Will- A will gives you a voice when you’re gone. You can appoint guardians, distribute your possessions, and make requests.

2.       Trust- A trust allows you to pass assets your heirs, sidestep probate court, reduce your estate tax, and minimize potential lawsuits.

3.       Healthcare Power of Attorney & Living Will-  These documents allow you to name someone to make medical decisions for you and enforce your wishes about treatments.

4.       Dependable Power of Attorney- This allows you to appoint someone you trust to make legal decisions if you can’t.

5.       Beneficiary Designations- This document names beneficiaries who will inherit your assets.

6.       Life Insurance- If you purchase life insurance, it will help those who would be financially devastated by your death pay for expenses.

7.       Provision for Digital Assets- This document outlines what you want done with your computer’s hard drive, electronic photos, data stored in the cloud, and online accounts once you've passed. Be sure to include passwords!

8.       Letter of Intent- A letter of intent is used to convey private requests, thoughts, wishes, or other information.

9.       List of documents- Make a list of the important stuff: Life insurance policies, deeds, pensions, retirement accounts, bank accounts, all of it. Include account numbers & passwords and where they’re stored.

If you have questions and would like to meet with a financial representative, Honor Financial Group is a great first step.  Give us a call to set up an appointment today. 

 

And, don’t forget to follow Honor on Twitter @honorcu!  Tweet us and let us know what you want to hear us talk about on Mason Jar Monday next week using #askhonorcu!

To listen to 97.5 Y-Country's Mark Durocher & Honor Credit Union's Greg Hildebrand talk about Estate Planning, click on the Mason Jar Monday episode below!

 

Securities offered through LPL Financial, member FINRA/SIPC. Insurance products offered through LPL Financial or its licensed affiliates.  Honor Credit Union and Honor Financial Group are not registered broker/dealers and are not affiliated with LPL Financial.

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Most Common Budgeting Mistakes

It’s no wonder that January is the number one month for people to begin new financial endeavors, and nearly a third of people surveyed by GoBankingRate said their 2016 goals include “saving more and spending less.” At Honor Credit Union, this is music to our ears, as we love helping members save their money! BUT the big question is HOW are these people going to stick to their budget and be financially successful? By having a fail-proof budget in place, and knowing what the most common budgeting mistakes are and how to avoid them!

Here are the top five mistakes (and how to avoid them!):

1.      Failing to set a realistic budget- Many times, people feel overwhelmed by how long it takes to tack expenses and set a budget. Make time to sit down and tackle this project, as it will only help you in the long run.

2.      Using the exact same budget every month- This is a big mistake, as expenses differ each month, depending on holidays, birthdays, vacations, energy costs during warmer or cooler months, or unexpected home or auto repairs. Plan each month one month ahead, so you can make be sure to allot money for these particular expenses that aren’t recurring.

3.      Never allowing for wiggle room-  If your budget is too set, as in every penny is set aside for some specific expense, you won’t have anything left to pay for that unexpected car repair or other surprise expense. Be sure to set aside some money for these extra expenses.

4.      Relying on credit cards- If you’re relying on credit cards to make payments on necessary expenses, but then failing to make payments towards the cards themselves, you’re just digging yourself a huge debt hole that you may not be able to get out of. To avoid this, use cash only for the first few months of your budget so you can see where the money is going.

5.      Quitting your budget too soon- Many times, people will stick to their budget for a couple of months, then quit. Don’t do this! Successful budgeting takes time. You need to mess up a little in order to figure out what you really need each month.

Remember- if you stick to your budget as closely as possible and make budgeting a part of life and a long-term commitment, you’ll ultimately end up financially successful!

Don’t forget to follow us on twitter @honorcu and let us know what you want to hear about next week using #askhonorcu! 

To hear 97.5 Y-Country's Mark Durocher and Honor's Kaylee Williams talk about New Year's Financial Resolutions, click on the Mason Jar Monday episode below!

 

Tax Time Tips

Tax Time 2016 is almost here, so it’s important to begin thinking about filing your tax return! But something most don’t consider when filing, are if mistakes are made. If you make a mistake on your tax return, it usually takes the IRS longer to process it, and they may have to contact you about that mistake before your return is processed, causing a delay in the receipt of your tax refund. And nobody likes that!

Here are a couple of tips to avoid common mistakes when filing:

1.      Tax season opens January 19^th, 2016- You can begin filing your tax returns immediately on this date!

2.      Deadline is April 18^th, 2016- Taxes are due this day. However, if you failed to do so, don’t fret- you can still file and receive your refund! If you are not due a refund and instead owe, the sooner you file, the less your late filing penalty fee will be.  The fee could be anywhere from 5% to 25% of your unpaid balance per month! If for some reason you can’t file right away, immediately file for a tax extension. This way, you have until October 15^th to file without penalties.

3.      When filing online, install anti-virus and firewall protections on your computer and encrypt tax files- This ensures thieves won’t get your personal information, and end up stealing any money you may be due!

4.      Remember to sign it!- Missed signatures are more common than you think, and this qualifies as an incomplete return- meaning it will be returned to you for a signature and the process will be delayed.

5.      Double check your social security number entry, name, & financial institution routing number/your account number, calculations (these are all simple but common errors). And, if you misspell, have a typo, or otherwise, your return will be returned to you and the process will be delayed.

If you are going to be e-filing your tax return, Honor Credit Union can help! Once tax season opens, we’ll have a link to TurboTax, an e-filing tax service, right on our website homepage for your convenience! AND if you decide to e-file with TurboTax through our website, all Honor Credit Union members will receive a discount- up to $15 off! For more details, visit honorcu.com.

Don’t forget to follow us on twitter @honorcu and let us know what you want to hear about next week using #askhonorcu! 

New Year’s Financial Resolutions

 

First of all, Happy New Year, 2016 is here! If you haven’t yet, you’re probably thinking about some New Year’s Resolutions. And, statistically speaking, you probably have at least one financially related resolution that may include saving more, spending less, investments, loans, etc.

If you haven’t figured out exactly what you’d like to work on financially in 2016, here are a couple of things to think about:

1.       Did you have good saving habits last year?

It doesn’t matter if you make 20K or 100K, you can’t accomplish your financial goals if you spend all of your money. The best way to increase savings is automatically making payments to yourself. Have a set amount or percentage automatically go into your savings account from every paycheck you receive.

2.       Were you financially responsible?

Late or skipped payments not only generate fees and interest charges, but they also can damage your credit score. A low credit score means higher interest rates on future financial endeavors, denial of loans, and a lot more negative stuff. Be responsible in 2016- always make payments on time, or better yet, make these payments automatic, too!

3.       What’s your debt like?

If you’re like the majority of Americans, you probably have some sort of financial debt. If you carry too large of a debt balance, and only make minimum payments, this can negatively impact you as well. Try working with a financial planner to get yourself on track, spend less and save more, and make a budget, and stick to it!

Follow these tips, and you could make 2016 your best financial year yet!

Don’t forget to follow us on twitter @honorcu and let us know what you want to hear about next week using #askhonorcu! 

To hear 97.5 Y-Country's Mark Durocher and Honor's Kaylee Williams talk about New Year's Financial Resolutions, click on the Mason Jar Monday episode below!