Doing nothing to plan your estate is in the short-run the easiest and least expensive. During your lifetime, you incur no costs whatsoever (unless of course you become disabled and need help from someone else to make financial or health card decisions for you). This approach will also ensure that your heirs receive the least amount of your estate, with the longest possible delay. The reason for this is that even if you do not write a Will or a trust, the State has written a will for you under the law of Intestate Succession. Section 6400 of the California Probate Code states, "Any part of the estate of a decedent not effectively disposed of by will (If you do not have one or the one you have is deemed invalid), passes to the decedent's heirs as prescribed in this part."
The result of an estate distribution under this section can be that the "heirs" of your estate may be people you do not even know. This can cause serious and unexpected hardship because under the law of Intestate Succession the surviving spouse does not always inherit all of the deceased spouse's property.
This approach is much like taking your car out for a drive and letting go of the wheel. It is more than likely that the car, or your unplanned estate will go in a direction far different than you would have chosen, had you decided to plan its course.
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