Estate Planning & Elder Law Attorneys Serving Queens Village
Queens Village, previously known as Brushville, and before that known as Little Plains, is now a mostly residential neighborhood in the Borough of Queens in New York City. Little Plains dates back to around 1640; but in the 1820’s resident Thomas Brush established a blacksmith shop, which quickly grew to additional blacksmith shops in the area as well as a factory and the area became known as Brushville.[1] From the 1870’s to around the 1900, the name seemed to convert over to Queens Village, which differentiated it from the larger Borough of Queens which was incorporated into New York City in 1898.
Just east of the Village’s boundaries is the world-famous Belmont Park horse racing facility and home to the “Belmont Stakes” which is the third leg of the Triple Crown.[2] The area will also soon be the home to the New York Islanders NHL Hockey Team as the UBS Arena is under construction and expected to be completed in November 2021.[3] The arena is been built almost immediately behind the grandstands of Belmont Park.
Queens Village has its own stop on the Long Island Railroad and is a reasonable 32-minute ride to Penn Station in New York City.[4] The area is also serviced by express bus route X86 direct into the city. An additional transportation convenience is that the Cross Island Parkway runs through the eastern edge of the Village, providing good access north and south to Grand Central Parkway and the Belt Parkway, respectively.
Well-known adjacent neighborhoods to Queens Village include Bellaire and Hollis Hills. Hollis Hills is known to be a more affluent part of the village with Colonial, Tudor, and Ranch style homes, currently seeking sales prices for single-family detached homes in excess of about $1 million.[5] Bellaire is the largest area of Queens Village and by some, both names are considered synonymous. Residents of Queens Village are also fortunate to have access to their very own branch of the Queens Public Library at 94-11 217th St.[6]
The attorneys of Esther Schwartz Zelmanovitz, PLLC are honored to serve the residents of Queens Village and the surrounding area. Our firm is proud to have assisted residents of Queens Village with their estate planning at different stages in their lives.
A Queens Village resident may ask “Is estate planning relevant to me now?”
The simple answer is, yes. Estate planning is relevant to every individual who has reached his or her eighteenth birthday. Do not make the mistake and assume that you are too young, or don’t have enough money to address your estate planning needs. Someone could have no money at all, but if something unexpected should happen to them, they would need documents in place to make sure that their loved ones, or people they choose, have the legal ability to manage their affairs for them.
As a parent or legal guardian, you have the legal right to access your child’s medical information, make their health care decisions, sign contracts or speak with insurance companies on their behalf, open a bank account, and so on. Once your child has reached his or her eighteenth birthday, in New York, as parents, you do not have the right to manage their finances (if you are not a joint owner on the accounts). You no longer have the automatic legal right to access their medical information, speak with insurance companies, and more.
It is critical to have the right documents in place, that evidence your child’s consent to allow you to legally continue to assist them with their legal, financial, and health care matters. Without documents in place, as much as you would want to help, and as much as your eighteen-year-old child would need your help, you may be unable to do so.
It is not so concerning when you can guide your child through a financial or health care matter, but what happens in the event of unexpected accident or illness, where they can no longer manage things for themselves, and you don’t have the legal documents giving you a legal right to step in?
The same for the child – once you reach your eighteenth birthday, you have the right to choose who could legally step into your shoes and manage your affairs should something happen to you. It is no longer automatically your parents.
As an individual goes through life stages, they may wish to update their documents to revise who they are appointing to step in for them regarding legal, financial, and health care decisions. They may wish to add documents in the event they accumulate assets or have children. Whereas a very young person with no assets or children yet may simply need a durable power of attorney and health care proxy, as life develops, they may wish to add a last will and testament, and even additional documents to address their evolving situation. More information on estate planning through life stages here.
As a person goes through life stages, he or she may not only be concerned about what happens in the event of incapacity, or who gets their assets when they die, but also, how will they protect their assets in the event long term care is needed. Often, people are careful to prepare a will, but they are less concerned about protecting their assets so that when they die, there is not much left for the will to address.
As a person ages, it is not only important to review estate planning documents, but also to consider long-term care planning and asset preservation so that your estate plan will protect you during your lifetime. You will be able to appoint the people of your choice to assist you when you cannot manage your affairs on your own, you could name who will manage your estate when you are gone, who will be the beneficiaries of your estate, and very important, ensure that you will actually have your lifetime of hard-earned assets pass to your beneficiaries instead of being spent on long term care.
It is a privilege for the team at Esther Schwartz Zelmanovitz, PLLC to help Queens Village residents and all New York State residents preserve and protect their assets, get long term care when needed, and still have the orderly and successful distribution of a lifetime worth of assets upon the client’s death.
It is important to seek guidance from an experienced estate planning attorney experienced in elder law as early as possible. Once a crisis hits, some planning options may no longer be available and may unnecessarily result in added stress and anguish to loved ones, not to mention greater financial costs and complications.
Our Experienced Attorneys Would Be Delighted to Work With You
Call Esther Schwartz Zelmanovitz, PLLC at (516) 466-WILL or contact us online to take the first step in giving both you and your loved one’s peace of mind.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queens_Village,_Queens
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belmont_Park
[3] https://www.newsday.com/sports/hockey/islanders/ubs-arena-belmont-park-frequently-asked-questions
[4] Google Maps – directions via public transportation via train.
[5] April 2020 search of “for sale” properties on realtor.com
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queens_Village,_Queens
