You look down and notice the little flashing light on your phone. Suddenly your focus has shifted from your task at hand to finding your charger so your phone doesn’t die. In many ways, you are the charger of your family. Yes, your children go out into the world and live their lives, but occasionally they come home. You provide them with a sense of comfort and infinite strength that is hard to find outside the home. Just as your charger gives your phone battery strength, you give your family strength. So what happens once you die? Who becomes the new charger, or who is in charge?
One of the biggest problems people fight over in settling an estate administration is who is going to be in charge. If you don’t make that decision before you die then your children may fight over who will be in charge or have resentment towards the siblings in charge. One possible solution is to name an independent third-party trustee or trust company to be in charge. This could be a viable option for many reasons. Some of those reasons include the cost, the fighting, the feeling that somebody is being taken advantage of, or the feeling that somebody is getting more than other children. When you do your plan you tell them what you want.
Remember you are the charger that powers your family and helps hold them together. You lose that strength after you die. I have seen too many situations where the family splinters. Creating an Estate Plan is a way to keep that charge solid.