Life requires us to do many things, as it encompasses much. Estate planning can touch on many parts of an individual’s life. It can dictate who will make important financial and health care decisions in the event of an individual’s incapacitation, and it, of course, can layout how assets will be distributed upon death. Those assets typically include a family home, bank accounts, retirement accounts and family heirlooms. Yet, as our world becomes more and more digitized, Ohio residents should ensure they don’t neglect their digital assets when engaging in estate planning.
Cryptocurrency is one of the biggest and most important parts of a digital estate. This form of currency is becoming increasingly popular, but its value can oscillate significantly over time. For this reason alone, cryptocurrency owners need to make sure to not only be clear in their estate plan about their ownership of cryptocurrency, but also about how it should be distributed and when and how it can be used.
A common problem with cryptocurrencies in estate plans is that they are notoriously difficult to access. Therefore, those who pass away without leaving instructions for how to access such digital currency can have it virtually locked away forever. So, cryptocurrency owners should be sure to identify all crypto keys and accounts in a will so that heirs can easily access the digital currency.
Even a minimal amount of cryptocurrency can be worth thousand or even tens of thousands of dollars, which is why owners need to make sure they account for their assets in their estate plans. As important as that may be, though, cryptocurrency is just one of the many digital assets that an individual may own. Webpages, social media accounts and other online profiles can have financial and sentimental value. To avoid these assets from being lost forever, estate planners need to make sure they keep a clear account of all digital assets as well as how to access them. Only then can they be appropriately accounted for when devising an estate plan.
