You’ve been careful with your finances. Your home is your sanctuary, and you know where everything is. You have made your life and your living space just the way you like it.
Who in your life knows why you have things set up the way you do? Would that person(s) be available to serve you, if you could no longer manage on your own? Will that person keep your privacy confidential, no matter what you have hidden in your home?
For many folks who have experienced a health crisis, privacy might be considered a luxury. This is why planning ahead is so important. Family is not always the right fit if you feel you would suffer from their judgement about how you do things.
Here is a thought experiment to see how you feel about this possible judgement: What makes you feel more independent; having a housekeeper clean your home, or your daughter clean your home? Most of our readers would say that a housekeeper (someone you have the power to fire, if you don’t like their work, or their attitude) makes them feel more independent. If this is true for you, consider who will serve and follow your estate plan, during your incapacity, resignation, or death.
Marguerite Lorenz, CTFA, CLPF is a Master Trustee and a Managing Partner at Lorenz Private Trustees (MyTrustee.net) and has served as a Trustee and Executor since 2003.