Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorneys Serving Manhasset
A hamlet in Nassau County, New York, Manhasset is a location rich with early history. Once a favorite grazing location for early English settlers’ cattle, Manhasset has also once been known as “Little Cow Neck,” because of its agricultural use.[1]
Manhasset’s name comes from a Native American term meaning “island neighborhood.”[2]
Present day Manhasset is known in the region for its local shopping. Within the formal boundaries of Manhasset you’ll find local merchants with unique stores and products. And just a couple miles away and just outside the hamlet’s borders you’ll find upscale and modern shopping with world-known labels of high style at “Northern Boulevard’s American Manhasset” mall.[3] The local shopping is somewhat famous because it was referred to as “Miracle Mile” in piano star and singer Billy Joel’s 1980 hit, “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me.” In the 1947 holiday film “Miracle on 34th Street”, character Fred Gailey wishes to buy a colonial home in Manhasset, a very common architectural style in the region.[4]
It’s a small town of less than 3 square miles and fewer than 10,000 residents according to the 2010 census.[5] Locals also know of The Villages – that Manhasset is known to include three adjacent incorporated villages: Munsey Park, Plandome and Plandome Heights, although residents in The Villages will have Manhasset addresses for mailing purposes.[6] The Manhasset station on the Long Island Railroad provides convenient access and a scheduled ride of less than 45 minutes into New York City’s Penn Station.
One major appeal of this area is well-regarded public schools. There are just 3 public schools in Manhasset and according to the local Chamber of Commerce, has one of the lowest student/teacher ratios in Nassau Public Schools (12:1) and ranks in the top 5 for spending levels per child.[7]
Combining these many advantages; shopping, schools, convenience to NYC, and a rich history, Manhasset is a great place to live and a desirable neighborhood to spend one’s time.
Access to skilled professional advisors is another advantage that Manhasset residents can be proud of. The law firm of Esther Schwartz Zelmanovitz, PLLC, stands ready to help local residents of Manhasset 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.
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?
After your lifetime, without having an estate plan in place, the State of New York determines who gets the things that you owned during your lifetime. The law has a specific order of inheritance which includes your spouse and children, then grandchildren, then up to your parents, siblings, and continues to more remote family members if none of the above exist or have survived you. If your prefer to provide for a non-family member, or to gift to one child more than another, or grandchildren while their parents are living, then you will need to create an estate plan, which may include executing a Will, a Trust, retitling assets to joint ownership, or designating beneficiaries.
Preparing a will or trust allows you to designate who will be in charge to carry out your wishes and instruct exactly who gets what. You can designate specific individuals to get specific assets, in specific amounts or percentages. You can also direct how an individual gets their share; either outright or remaining in trust, either only at a certain age, or only upon accomplishing a certain life event. Basically, if you are okay with the state laws regarding the distribution of your estate, then it may not be pivotal to create an estate plan. But if you would like the control to determine how everything should be distributed and by whom, you need to address your estate plan.
Although not always given enough attention, it is crucial to recognize that estate planning isn’t only planning for after your lifetime. There’s also a possibility that at some point during your life you may be incapacitated due to illness, accident or advanced age and be unable to manage your own legal, financial and medical affairs. The process of estate planning also involves preparing documents that will help you and your family in face of your incapacity. By ensuring that you have a properly drafted Power of Attorney and Advance Health Care Directives, you will be prepared for incapacity, should it strike.
No one is safe from the possibility of death or incapacity due to their health or young age. If you don’t take the right steps now, there may come a time that it is too late. Become educated about this process and start your proactive planning right away. The attorneys at our firm can educate you about the estate planning process and determine the best estate plan for your individual needs and objectives.
How can I ensure that my beneficiaries receive my estate?
As mentioned above, having a properly drafted and executed estate plan will allow you to provide for the people or charities that you choose, and not those mandated by the laws of intestacy. Further, it will allow you to direct inheritance to be held in trusts to preserve an inheritance for a young beneficiary, an financially irresponsible beneficiary, a beneficiary with an addiction issue, a beneficiary with creditor or marital issues, or a beneficiary who may have special needs or otherwise be receiving government benefits. And just as important, it will ensure that your estate is not distributed to any unintended beneficiaries.
Further, estate planning may include tax planning or long-term care planning to preserve your assets and minimize any reduction in your estate whether during lifetime or after lifetime. Taking the right measures early on will allow you to maximize what you are able to leave for your beneficiaries and more importantly to preserve the maximum amount of your lifetime of savings for you and your spouse.
Our firm welcomes the privilege to assist Manhasset residents with their elder law planning and estate planning. We can guide you through the questions and concerns you may have related to this important topic and we will help you through the completion of your estate plan to protect both yourself and your beneficiaries as you intend.
Who can help my family administer my estate when I am gone?
The attorneys at Esther Schwartz Zelmanovitz, PLLC will be ready to help your executor, your trustee, and your family, through the estate administration process when the time comes. Your executor and trustee will likely need assistance with the probate process. Timely action by your executor or trustee after your death will help the estate be settled efficiently and as quickly as possible. Our firm will be here to answer any questions and help navigate the estate administration process. There are many steps to the process that must be followed and getting guidance from attorneys who not only know how to guide you through the process but will do so with care and compassion during the emotional and trying time that your loved ones may be experiencing can make all the difference.
One of the greatest gifts that a loved one can inherit is not monetary, but the gift of being left with a well-organized and properly prepared estate plan. Contact our office to set up an appointment to review your estate plan. Not only will this give you peace of mind, but you are giving peace of mind to your loved ones as well.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhasset,_New_York
[2] https://manhassetny.org/spotlight-on-manhasset/
[3] https://manhassetny.org/spotlight-on-manhasset/
[4] “Miracle on 34th Street Script – transcript from the screenplay and/or classic 1947 Natalie Wood movie”. Script-o-rama.com. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhasset,_New_York
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhasset,_New_York
[7] https://manhassetny.org/manhasset-facts-figures/
