Attorneys Helping Hempstead Village Residents with Estate Planning, Medicaid Planning, and Probate
Hempstead Village, NY is an incorporated village located in the town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York. The Village of Hempstead has a rich history dating back to the 1620’s.[1] The area was first settled by early Dutch explorers from the Dutch West India Company who established a trading post in the place of Hempstead in 1613.[2] According to the Village’s own website, Reverend Robert Fordham and Mr. John Carman crossed Long Island Sound by rowboat in 1643 and negotiated with local Indians for a tract of land upon which to settle a new community, also known as a “town spot.”[3] This gathering and transaction between the settlors and the Indian tribe representatives is depicted in a mural currently housed in the Hempstead Village Hall. The following spring, in 1644, thirty to forty families crossed the sound to Hempstead Harbor and made their way to where the Village of Hempstead is now known.[5] The name “Hempstead” originated with initial co-founder John Carman, who was born in Hermel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England (just north of London).[6] It is known that George Washington stayed in Hempstead during his travels during the revolutionary times early in our country.[7]
The Village of Hempstead is the seat of government for the larger town of Hempstead, which holds 21 other villages.[8] The Village is known to be quite densely populated and today more than 53,000 people live within the 3.7 square mile village. For public transportation, the people of Hempstead Village are served by the Hempstead station of the Long Island Railroad, as well as the Hempstead Transit Center which offers bus connections to points further afield. Commuting the region by car is made easy, with easy access to the Southern State Parkway along the southern boundary of Hempstead Village. Hofstra University is also located within Hempstead Village, and brings that college-town feel to this wonderful area of Long Island.
Access to skilled professional advisors is something that Hempstead Village residents can be proud of. The law firm of Esther Schwartz Zelmanovitz, PLLC, stands ready to help local residents of Hempstead and nearby communities with their legal needs in the areas of Estate Planning, Medicaid Planning, Probate, and Estate Administration. Our firm’s founder is recognized as “AV Preeminent” rated by attorney peer rating service Martindale-Hubbell, she is a member of the New York State Bar Association, the Nassau County Bar Association, and a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. With her many years of experience in addition to the education and credentials, our firm will be able to confidently guide you through the estate planning process. Aside from our founder, our associate, Esther P. Levinson, is highly qualified in these same areas of law and our firm is proud of the years of experience that our attorneys and staff have under their belt to assist families in Hempstead with estate planning questions.
Our firm finds that people without any planning in place ask the following or similar general questions about estate planning:
- Why do I need to make an estate plan?
- How can I protect my beneficiaries and ensure they receive my estate?
- Who will help my family with my estate when I am gone?
Why Do I Need To Make An Estate Plan?
Without a Will or Trust in place to provide the necessary instructions, your estate will otherwise transfer as the State of New York determines – which is according to a set default of family members: first to your children, then grandchildren, or if you don’t have posterity below you, then looking “upwards” to parents, then siblings or nieces and nephews. If your preference is to provide for a non-family member, or to favor grandchildren over children, then you’ll need to provide those instructions by executing a Will, or another alternative, such as a Trust. With these documents you can designate specific individuals and also get very specific as to assets, ratios or percentages, and also potentially require that a beneficiary wait a number of years, or accomplish a specified prerequisite before receiving their inheritance. In summary, if you’re fine leaving your estate in the hands of the courts, then you could skip a Will; but if you have different intentions and if you would like to determine where you estate should end up, you need to implement an estate plan.
Furthermore, estate planning isn’t only planning for death. There’s also a chance that at some point during your life you may be incapacitated and unable to manage your own affairs. The estate planning process also involves executing documents that can help you and your family proceed through a period of incapacity without additional legal fees. By ensuring that you have a financial Power of Attorney, a Health Care Proxy, and a Living Will, you will be prepared for incapacity should it strike.
Make an appointment today with the professionals at our firm to educate you about the estate planning process and how our experience in this area will have you prepared to execute your estate planning documents with a full understanding of their purpose.
How Can I Protect My Beneficiaries And Ensure They Receive My Estate?
First, as discussed above, making out an estate plan will ensure you don’t leave out a non-family beneficiary, or ensures that your wishes are carried out as to unequal ratios or providing for grandchildren. You protect your intended beneficiaries by eliminating or reducing the chance that your estate goes to unintended beneficiaries.
Second, there are strategies involved in estate planning, an area of legal practice known as “elder law” where the assets of the estate may be structured in a way, including ownership of assets, or the purchasing of additional insurance products, which help to ensure that if there is significant need for long-term care, that there will be assets remaining at death for your beneficiaries to receive.
Third, you may have beneficiaries that might be better off receiving their inheritance slowly, or under the direction of another family member. Sometimes this may be due to a beneficiary who is disabled in some way. Other times, it may be that the beneficiary is young or for another reason the beneficiary is not yet ready to receive an outright inheritance because they do not have budgeting and investment skills. This could lead to quickly depleting the inheritance on frivolous expenditures or unwise investments.
Our firm welcomes the opportunity to assist the residents of Hempstead with estate planning and elder law questions. We can guide you through the uncertainty you may feel in this important topic and we will see you through the completion of your estate plan to protect your beneficiaries as you intend.
Who Will Help My Family With My Estate When I Am Gone?
The law firm of Esther Schwartz Zelmanovitz, PLLC will be here for residents of Hempstead and the surrounding areas, and we will be ready to help your family and your executor through the estate administration process. Your executor may need assistance with the probate process, or estate administrator may need assistance with the estate administration. He or she may likely have questions about accounting or the need for tax returns for the estate. Our firm will be here to assist with these questions and help the executor or administrator navigate the process. Quick action by your executor or your family members after your death will help the estate to be settled efficiently and as quickly as possible. Should issues arise during the process, our attorneys will be able to advise the executor on how to best overcome the problem and work towards a successful settlement of the estate.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hempstead_(village),_New_York
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hempstead_(village),_New_York
[3] https://villageofhempstead.org/31/Our-Community
[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hempstead_(village),_New_York
[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hempstead_(village),_New_York
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hempstead_(village),_New_York
[7] https://villageofhempstead.org/189/About-the-Village
[8] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hempstead_(village),_New_York
