Pennsylvania Investment Observer

Handling the Stuff in Life

by Daniel J. Nestlerode

In a recent article in the Sentinel, I offered my readers my attorney’s worksheets for preparing your Last Will and Testament. My offer still stands and is open to any of my readers at no obligation. Just drop me a note requesting the worksheets at Nestlerode & Loy, Inc. (Our new corporate name) at P.O. Box 343, State College, Pa. 16804-0343. These worksheets are a great place to start to accumulate all the information you need to have someone else, whom you trust, manage your affairs after you are gone. Whether you have investments or not, it is always a good idea to record your wishes on paper so that your heirs and your important causes benefit from your lifetime’s work.

That said, there is another possibility about which I want to make you more aware. What happens if you become unable to manage your own affairs? Many amazingly, self-sufficient individuals like to keep close tabs on their investments, real estate, bank accounts and other accumulated assets. However, as we get older, many people’s interests shift and their ability to handle the stuff in life diminishes. Sometimes our capabilities diminish suddenly, with a heart attack or a stroke. Other times our capabilities diminish slowly as we age and get forgetful. In any event, we aren’t yet dead, but we are headed towards the exit from this world. For some, the swan song last years and even decades. If this happens to you, who do you trust to help you handle your finances and preserve your accumulated assets during your twilight years? The enabling document for this possible circumstance is a Power of Attorney, a document that allows someone else to act for you and take care of your assets in your place. Further, a Durable Power of Attorney allows another to act for you even if you are incapacitated with some breakdown of your body. Finally, you also want your medical instructions and those life and death decisions spelled out so that expensive, heroic efforts are made or not made to continue your life, beyond the time that your life might have any reasonable quality.

This is all serious stuff I am talking about. So clearly, in addition to your Will, you should have a Power of Attorney executed and in place in case your circumstances take a turn you are not anticipating. It just makes good sense. The crux of the issue lies in having someone you trust who is capable and competent at handling your stuff and having them get the assistance needed to preserve your investments, real estate holdings and other assets. For many people, this means having an investment advisor in place to help with your investment portfolio long before you might need your Power of Attorney to kick in.

If you would like to see a copy of a standard Power of Attorney and related documents, just drop me a note and I’ll be happy to send them to you. My address is mentioned above. Please note that I am not providing legal advice and that you should complete all such documents with the attorney of your choice. At this stage in my life, I know how difficult it is to acquire assets in life and how often they are frittered away because you have not faced up to your mortality and handled these housekeeping choirs. Take care of those who come after you. They are your heirs.

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