Modern Estate Planning Blog

A Fair Oaks will and trust lawyer’s job is to make sure that you have all of your ducks in a row so that if you become incapacitated or die, your loved ones will now how to manage your estate and follow your wishes. Laws in California vary from those found around the country, which is why you want to work with an attorney who is skilled in understanding your specific needs. One area that should be considered is your service providers.

“Service providers” covers a wide range of individuals involved in your life. Should you be unable to communicate with them, you want to ensure that your trustee, executor, guardian, or other responsible person is able to communicate with them on your behalf. Having them all listed in one place will make this job much more manageable.

Household Providers

This list should include all of the people or companies that you deal with when it comes to the maintenance of your home. If you are incapacitated, your home will need to continue to function in your absence, and your representative will need to be able to contact these people to make sure things keep running smoothly. In other cases, whether you are deceased or incapacitated, there are certain services that you may no longer need, and the person in charge needs to be able to contact the service providers and cancel with them.

Some examples of household providers that you will want to list might include:

• Computer support
• Food or water delivery
• Gardening
• House keepers
• Heating/Cooling system maintenance
• Heating oil delivery
• House sitters
• Pest control
• Pool or spa maintenance
• Utilities
• Vehicle maintenance

Basically, anything that you have performed on a regular basis should be noted, along with contact and payment information.

Medical Service Providers

You should also provide your Fair Oaks will and trust lawyer with contacts for your medical service providers. This information could be very valuable should you need medical attention but be unable to reach out to these providers on your own. Additionally, if you have standing appointments with these providers, it will be helpful to have them canceled so you don’t accrue charges for service you’re not using.

Some of the medical service providers you may want to include on your list are:

• Chiropractor
• Counselor
• Dentist
• Massage therapist
• Ophthalmologist
• Physical therapist
• Primary care physician
• Psychiatrist
• Specialists

Personal Service Providers

There are other types of regular services that you may use, and you’ll want to include these as well for the same reasons already mentioned.

Some personal service providers to keep in mind for inclusion:

• Childcare provider
• Hairdresser
• Home care provider
• Meal preparation
• Transportation
• Tutors

Additional Information

Along with the contact information for these service providers, it’s a good idea to make notes about when they are expected, and you may even want to include service agreements and contracts. For example, if you have a standing arrangement to have your sprinkler system blown out each fall, make a note of that.

Your Fair Oaks will and trust lawyer may not include all of this information directly in your estate plan, but he or she will want to be able to make a note of where it can be located when the need arises.