MICHELLE LERMAN: I am a certified specialist only in estate planning, trust, and probate law. People often don’t do their estate planning because they think, number one, it’s too complicated. And they think, number two, they don’t have enough assets to do their estate planning. But actually, it’s the reverse that’s true. If you don’t have a lot of assets, it’s absolutely essential that you do your estate planning because you can’t afford all of the legal fees that arise if you don’t have a plan. You want to deal with a certified specialist and advisor, someone who’s truly a specialist in estate planning because then they’ll deal with all of the paperwork. You’ll know that it’s done properly. And as far as being complicated, it is much more complicated to not have a plan and have something happen to you than it is to create a plan.
Our firm is unique because of the collaboration between the real estate and the estate planning because someone who owns real estate needs to also have an estate plan to make sure that their assets are preserved. There’s things that we share with our clients that you don’t learn just in books. They’re real-life situations about how it works out, what to do, what not to do. And almost always, when someone leaves my office, they leave and they give me a hug. And they say, “Thank you. I feel so much better. I such a relief.” So I know for a fact that our clients have peace of mind when they leave.
[GRAPHIC: Lerman Law Partners, LLP, THE REAL ESTATE INVESTOR’S LAWYERS, 415.454.0455, www.RealEstateInvestorLaw.com, SAN RAFAEL OFFICE, LERMAN LAW BUILDING, 802 “B” STREET, SAN RAFAEL, CA 94901, SAN FRANCISCO OFFICE, 625 MARKET STREET, PENTHOUSE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94105]