My Last To Do List: In Case of Emergencies

As I mentioned in my 2022 recap post, one of the things I completed last year was what I call my last to do list.  Actually it is more of a file with a bunch of documents and a to do list in it, so let's just call it the In Case Of Emergencies (ICOE) file. If you have not read my first post of this series about trust and estate planning, you can read it here. 

This is basically a file that you can tell your emergency contact the location of so if something happens to you, they can go and get it and have a one stop shop of where things are and what they may need to handle for you. This is something that my grandmother had and after she passed away, it was so easy to arrange her affairs, since she had already done most of the work for us. After that, I decided to hone and combine a couple of the lists that I already keep for myself and update my file so that my loved ones would have a roadmap for me. Obviously this changes over time, so I have put it on my yearly purge and organize task list as something I revisit and update once a year. 

Important Docs: I basically have a big thick plastic ziplock bag (like this one) that I keep all of my grab and go important documents in. This includes the lists I will reference below, but it also has things like my trust documents, birth certificate, passport, deed to my house, title for the car etc. I also keep a paper copy of each of my bills so that the account number and phone number to contact are handy. Obviously this could be found online but I like to take the "belt and suspenders" approach. 

Vaccinations! (this can be uploaded online now too)

Other Important Items: This is also not on a list, but I keep any old memory cards or external hard drives with photos etc. in the same bag. I know most things are in the cloud now, but I have a lot of older photos that I have not put in the cloud so those are kept on hard drives for the time being. 

List of bills: This is a printout of an Excel spreadsheet of what bills I have, how they are paid, when they are due, and how much they normally are. Most of my bills are on autopay, so I have also noted whether it comes from my bank account (like the mortgage) or the credit card that I use for autopay. I only use one credit card for anything I have autopay on and use a different card for any online purchases and a third card for brick and mortar purchases. This way if the card that I carry around with me gets lost or stolen, I do not have to go back and update all of my online and/or autopay details. I also have this list saved in a Google drive folder that I share with my emergency contact so that it can be accessed online as well. 

List of bank accounts, retirement accounts etc.: This is also an Excel spreadsheet; I do not put account numbers on this, but it is a list of where the account is, what type it is, and who is the beneficiary. This includes my loan for my mortgage. 

List of properties: the deed or deeds should be in the file anyway, but it could also help to keep a list of the address(es) of any properties in the file too. I have also noted who my mortgage is with and approximately how much I have left on my loan (to be updated once per year). 

List of email address and passwords: this is also up to you and can be stored electronically and shared instead. You can also get a password vault app that can be shared. However, my list is not long; it only includes sites that I think people would want to have access to, such as my Google account, which is where all of my photos and such are. Also this can be retrieved in some cases after your death, although I did read that the Apple iCloud data is not transferrable. To be safe, I would share your login with someone if the information is important! 

Where is this file? Most importantly, tell someone where this file is and how to access it if it is in a safe or somewhere locked. 

Just a side note, as I have mentioned in the past, this file is also the very same one that I would grab if there were a fire heading my way, and because of this, it also has cash in it. I also have a box of photos (hard copies) and a go bag with a change of clothes and some food as part of my emergency prep kit, but if the fire were coming fast, I would just grab the ICOE file and skedaddle. So it satisfies two different purposes. 

Do you have a ICOE file or a Go Bag? Is there anything that I do not have on my list that you have on yours? 

My Last To Do List: Trusts & Other Documents

As I have mentioned before, I have a folder of all of my important docs and a list of all of my accounts and important details. I often call this list "the death list" because it is the list of things to do after I die, but this sounds kinds of morbid, so I will retitle it the last to do list. I hope that this list will not be needed for a long time, but I am happy to keep changing it if that means I live a lot longer. However, I also do feel that it is important to have your affairs in order, just in case. This post is about item one on the last to do list, setting up a trust. 

Before I get started, if you do nothing else or do not feel like reading this long post, at least do these two things: (1) Set up beneficiaries on any retirement accounts or Transfer on Death (TOD) designation on your other accounts. This allows worry free and probate free transfers of your money to someone else and even if you do not have a will or any other paperwork, the money will get into the right hands. (2) Complete an Advance Directive (see below for more info) form which will detail what you want done in case you are incapacitated (i.e. DNR).

But now, let's talk about why any of us would need a trust. A trust will help you to avoid probate. Probate is what happens when you pass away and the court has to approve your will and name or approve your executor. The costs of probate differ by state but in California, costs are based on the gross value of the estate and are 4% on the first $100,000 and then there is a sliding scale after that. Let's just say your assets are worth $100,000. That would be a $4,000 cost!! Also, this process can take six or nine or even twelve months, which can be a pain for your loved ones. 

The alternative is to set up a trust. I always thought that a trust was something rich people had for their spoiled kids. This is not the case! A trust is something that protects you, outlines your wishes and minimizes taxes (and avoids probate!). When you die, your successor trustee (the person you want to carry out your wishes) can start doing what you outline right away without getting the court involved. Depending on your situation, setting up a trust should not be too difficult or costly. I spoke to two different trust attorneys and the going rate is around $1,500 - $2,000 depending on your situation and the number of properties you have (in CA it costs $200 per property to change the name on the title). Of course, you could probably also just Google it and fill out something online that would work, but I wanted the peace of mind that comes with having a professional help me. Plus, my job offers legal benefits, which are similar to health benefits where you pay a little bit month. This costs me about $360 per year, so the attorney fees for setting up a trust only cost me $360. 

Additionally, not only will the attorney help with the trust, but they will also complete an Advance Directive, a will and a Power of Attorney form for you. If you have not already set these up, even if you do not have a trust, you should at least have these three things. 

Why do you need these? Let's talk about each one separately. The Advance Directive conveys your wishes regarding your health in case you become incapacitated and outlines who has the right to make health decisions on your behalf. You can easily get these documents from the internet. Nobody wants a case of Terri Schiavo on their hands. Here is an Advance Directive form that I used in the past. These do vary from state to state so you should use one for your particular state. The other things you should write down and keep with your AD are things like: do you want to be cremated or if you want to be buried, where do you want to be buried, do you have a plot already, etc.?  

We all know what a will is, so I won't go into too much detail; however, you may think that it doesn't matter because everything will just go to your next of kin, which is true. But having a will makes things easier for the people you leave behind, specifically appoints an executor (otherwise the state may do this for you) and can detail who will take care of your children, what your wishes are for your funeral etc. Again, you may think that you won't care because you will be gone, but it will make things easier for whoever is left to take care of your affairs. You can also note anyone you do not want to have anything, like creepy uncle Phil for example. This article is very helpful, and also has a free online version of a will that you can use to get started. 

The Power of Attorney tells people who can make financial decisions on your behalf if something happens to you. We all think we are invincible but what happens if you are in a car accident and can no longer make your own decisions? The other option is to add someone as a joint account holder on your accounts, which will give them the freedom to use the money to pay for your care, pay your bills etc. However, if you don't feel comfortable with that, you should appoint a POA. 

Okay! Let's go back to the trust again. Setting it up does take a little work, i.e. you do have to know who you want to get your stuff, who you want to handle your affairs etc. But once you have decided that, the actual process of doing the paperwork is very easy. For example, I had to give the attorney all of the information about my bank accounts (not numbers, just where the accounts are held), any investment accounts, any properties with addresses and any specific bequests. For who I was going to bequest anything to, all they need is the person's name. No social, no address, no phone. For anyone I wanted to give POA designation to, it was the same. So it was really not as complicated as you may think. 

Also, just like most legalese, there is always a phrase to cover you. For example, very common language goes like this: I gift my 13 inch TV to my brother and if deceased, this gift shall lapse. What does this mean? It means if he is no longer around, the gift goes back into my estate. You can set this up however you want and the "if deceased" can literally be a list of 40 people who you want to have in order of importance, or you can give everything to a charity like Warren Buffet. 

Do you have any of the abovementioned items? What steps have you taken to arrange your affairs? Do you have any tips to add or questions about the above? 

Disclaimer: The information above is solely an opinion based my own personal experience. You do you. I am not a tax and/or financial advisor; nothing in this post should be taken as investment advice. I have no fiduciary responsibility to anyone reading this post. Please consult a financial advisor for investment advice.  For my other posts regarding money, go here. 

Randoms and Fixed

Remember the broken items of July? We are well on our way to getting those fixed! However, there have been some snags (and lags). I sent the Garmin back and I received a new one in the mail and guess what? It was the wrong model!! The one I sent them is a new one (the 410) and they sent me back an 8 year old 305! So now I have to send IT back and wait for another new one!

Speaking of that, I was really hoping to get it back before the Squamish 50k! I can't run an entire 50k in a new, cool place, with lots of ups and downs without my Garmin! What will I do!?

I also figured out the car situation. I decided to donate it to the American Cancer society. However, the process has taken longer than I thought. You have to fill out the online form, then they send you a confirmation, then you send in your pink slip and once they receive it, they come and get the car, which they then sell for cash. I lagged on sending in the pink slip, as for some reason I was worried I would do it wrong. Well I finally sent it on Thursday and will hopefully hear from them soon about coming to get the car!

The bike is fixed as well! I took it out for a test ride after I picked it up from the shop and it shifts perfectly. Plus they only charged me $30 instead of the $60 they quoted! In fact, I liked them so much that I told my friend about the shop and he asked if I could take his bike in, so on Saturday I rode his bike over there and left it with them! We are getting things fixed over here! I would like to incorporate a once a week or every two weeks bike ride into my schedule but am not sure I will be able to until after the 50 mile race in October. Luckily in the Bay Area, we can run and ride year round!

Manifesto -- Bike Shop

It feels really good to check things off the list, especially ones that have been on there for a while, or ones that are kind of a big deal. It's often easier to do the "fun" things on the list and to pass over the more tedious ones. I am glad to get these done!

What fun things have you checked off your list this summer? What tedious ones have you checked off?

If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix it*

*This post is alternately named: Procrastination Breeds Productivity.

I have had several things in my life break lately. Okay, to be honest, a couple of them broke months weeks ago and I have been procrastinating doing anything about them. In fact, am just getting around to figuring out what I am going to do about them. And there is no better way to start getting a lot of things done than a day where you are procrastinating something else.

Case in point. On Sunday, I was going to run. But first, breakfast. Then another cup of coffee. Then laundry, gardening, cleaning the bathroom (you know I am really avoiding something when the bathroom is clean!) and even getting my (2 month late) thank you notes/birthday cards written! And then I really started to tackle the To Do list. This is the list that each week I wipe clean the things I accomplished and add new things onto. Often there are things that I keep avoiding and therefore are on there for months weeks.

So, I started finally figuring out what to do about some of my broken things. I also recently acquired several new broken things, so July is going to be the month of fixing things.

What broke?

New tent. I JUST used it for the first time and then I glissaded down the mountain with it on my back and I ripped it! Luckily (?) it's on the bottom, so I should be able to fix it with just a patch or a piece of duct tape.

Sleeping bag. There is a tiny tear in it. It is not an expensive or great bag, but it has done the trick for a few years. I will probably just keep it until the tear gets too big to bear while simultaneously searching for a good deal on bags. I have actually been looking for a new one for a while, but the combo of lightweight, compact + low temperature = expensive, and I haven't found one in the right price range just yet. I hope my old one holds up until I do.

Garmin. Yup. The NEW Garmin. The strap broke! This is like losing a leg. I have been carrying it around on runs and I will probably send it back to Garmin since it is within the limited warranty (1 year). However, that will mean doing without it for a couple of weeks and I really don't have time for that! I will of course be running a lot, but I also have race weekends two times in July and two times in August so I definitely want it for these. I am not sure how to make this work exactly.

Phone. I dropped my phone in the toilet a few weeks ago. I snatched it RIGHT out (seriously folks; it was only in there for about 1.6 seconds) and turned it off and took it apart (and cleaned it!!) and put it in a bowl of rice. Later I turned it back on and it worked! However, there have been a few glitches since then. The camera makes a strange noise and the photo gallery keeps freezing up. I did not buy insurance and this phone is only about 8 months old, so I will have to just bear it / keep my fingers crossed for another year or so!

Shoes. Have you ever found the perfect pair of black flats and then tried to replace them and it just doesn't work? I had the perfect pair but they wore out so I tossed them and since then, I have bought probably half a dozen pairs in an attempt to replace them. Two of those pairs have already fallen apart! I have searched high and low and spent anywhere from $15 - $60 dollars each and still no luck! I threw the broken two away; there is no use keeping broken shoes.

Car. Remember this? I put a lot of money into this car and it still doesn't work. Now the question is...do I put more money in or do I give up while I am "ahead"? I am on the fence.

Bike. Remember this? I haven't been riding the bike because the chain falls off the chain-ring every time I shift gears. The only gear that really works is a high (difficult) gear. So on Sunday I took a ride to the bike repair shop! Now I just have to go and pick it back up and I am good to go!

Okay, so maybe the only thing I have actually done on this list is the bike (and the shoes), but at least I have gotten the gears rolling, so to speak. This month I hope to figure out solutions for the rest of the things on this list as well! Wish me luck!

What things do you put off doing? Do you have any broken items in your life that need fixing? Do you have any tips for fixing any of these items?