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I got a lot of good vibes sent my way from insurance professionals after I posted this the first time. Enjoy the flashback!
“You know, the only people that are grateful when someone’s dead is the recipient of life insurance, man.”
-Phillip Morrow, Pan America Insurance, Salesman of the year
Okay, this cracked me up, but it also made me think. “My name is Marc and I am a Dead Head who believes in the power of life insurance!” Hi Marc! I know many people both inside and outside of the Grateful Dead community who like to live in the moment and not think too much (or at all) about the future. Don’t get me wrong, it is completely alright to live in the moment. Ram Dass put it like this: “Remember, Be here Now.” While it is critical for everbody’s mental health to do a decent amount of living in the moment, it is equally important to take some mental trips into the future and to make some plans for that future. It’s like doing future you a favor- you dig? I have seen the power of a good, properly placed life insurance policy. The next time your taking a mental trip to the future- think about what life insurance could do for you and your family. After all according to Mr. Morrow, after you purchase a life insurance policy “Your going to be so free man…You’re going to be like flying!”
Typical Clients Involved in Their Typical Daydreams: How Much Does a $200 Last Will and Testament Really Cost?
My wife and I are big music fans (understatement). The other day we were out on our back porch enjoying a little music and a brief dance. My neighbor seeing this, took an opportunity to come on over and chit chat with us. The conversation quickly turned to her ailing mother and her estate plan. My neighbor, let’s call her “Sandy” expressed to me that she was worried about the plan her lawyer had in place for her mom. From previous conversations with Sandy, I knew who her mother’s lawyer was- a real pro, and someone I hold in high regard. I told Sandy that I knew who her mother was using and she should feel very secure that the plan was done correctly. At that point Sandy explained that they decided not to use the lawyer I thought they were using. “Marc, do you know how much she wanted to charge my mom?” Now understand- the lawyer we are talking about is a specialist and is very good at what she does- kind of like myself- so I knew the price range. When she told me the amount- I told her that it seemed reasonable. “Is this what you would charge?” Sandy asked. I told her it was certainly in the range of what I could charge. She seemed a bit put off by this. “My real estate attorney did my mom’s Will for $200!” (yes the same plan she was very worried about).
It turns out that Sandy should have been worried about the plan- in discussing her mother’s situation with her briefly it was clear that this attorney was not asking the right questions and had done a pretty poor job. In short, the real estate attorney masquerading as an estate planning attorney got my neighbor hooked on the idea that this type of planning should only cost $200. Even though she knew this plan was not good for her mom she jumped on it because it was cheap. I could tell it was going to take a lot to wean her from this idea of practically “free” planning. She had turned into a cheap estate plan junkie- and needed detox quick.
“How can he charge so little?” asked Sandy. She was clearly hung up on the price. I explained to her the real cost of a $200 estate plan. I explained that he could charge so little for two possible reasons: First, he charged such a small amount because he only did a small amount of work. A lot of my work as an attorney is just thinking and asking questions and thinking some more. Sure, it doesn’t look like work necessarily but things are going on inside that brain of mine. You’re not really paying for the documents, you’re paying for the counseling. And if you go see a specialist (which in most cases you should) you’re paying for their expert knowledge.
The second reason he could have charged such a small amount for the estate plan is a bit more sinister. This attorney is investing in Sandy’s mother’s death. When her mom does pass he hopes to get to handle her estate. When he probates her estate he can then charge her mom-big bucks and there will be nobody to complain about the bill.
A $200 estate plan is much more costly than the initial bill. That $200 is merely a down payment for some very expensive work in the future. It’s kind of a pay now or pay later situation. If you pay a specialist now you may greatly mitigate or eliminate a large bill later.
There is an old lawyer joke that goes something like this: A lawyer and a doctor find themselves at a cocktail party. The doctor is bombarded with medical questions all evening: “Doc my elbow is bothering me…” “Will grapefruit really lower my blood pressure?” “Can you look at this thing on my back?” During a free moment the doctor strikes up a conversation with the lawyer. He asks him how he deals with the relentless questioning outside of the office. The lawyer explains that when people ask him a legal question- he gives them the appropriate legal advice and then he sends them a bill. This seems to make sense to the doctor- he vows to bill everyone who had asked him a medical question that evening. The next day he prepared the bills and went to put them in his mailbox. When he opened the mailbox he was surprised to find… a bill from the lawyer.
Have you heard about the chemist who gave up his career to become a grave digger? Turns out his favorite element was barium!
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