In our last blog, we discussed the vital importance of naming a guardian who will care for your minor children should anything ever happen to you. It’s a topic that no one likes to think about, but every parent should.
Accidents happen every day, and you must do your best to plan for the unexpected. You owe it to your children to ensure that they will be kept safe, be loved, and be provided for if you are ever unable to do so. But you cannot treat the selection of a guardian flippantly or emotionally.
It is vital that you think pragmatically about who would be the best choice to care for your children. Today, we will continue our two-part blog series with four more important things to consider before naming a guardian for your children.
4) How many kids do you have, and do you want them to live together?
The number of children you have will have a big impact on who you select as their guardian. If you have a large number of children, the financial station of your potential guardian becomes even more important. It costs a great deal to raise children, and while you may want your children to all live together if anything ever happens to you, as a matter of financial practicality you may have to split them amongst two or more different guardians. If you are committed to having all of your children live together, your guardian options may be much more limited.
5) Location of guardians
Do you want your children to have to uproot their lives to go and live with their guardian? After losing their parents, having to move away from all of their friends and everything else familiar to them could be even more devastating. Other factors may outweigh the location of your guardians, but their proximity to where you live should definitely be a consideration.
6) Values of guardians
You need to ask yourself how you want your children to be raised, and can you trust your potential guardians to follow through with raising them in that manner. Is religion an important factor for you? What values and morals do you want your children to be raised with? Make sure the values and beliefs of your guardians are consistent with those that you want your children to have.
7) Willingness of guardians
You may have someone in mind who is a no-brainer to be the guardian for your children, but make sure you ask yourself and ask the person if he or she is truly willing to serve as a guardian? The impact that raising children will have on one’s life cannot be overstated, and you need to be absolutely positive that your potential guardian is willing to shoulder that burden.
For more information on selecting a guardian, or any other aspect of the estate planning process, please contact Amsberry Law today. And don’t forget to check out part one of this blog by clicking here.
Attorney Russell J.G. Amsberry
Attorney Russell J.G. Amsberry founded the Amsberry Law Firm in 1995 with the goal of providing clients with exceptional, focused representation on their issues. His success as a legal advocate has been reflected in the numerous professional honors he has received, such as speaking engagements and inclusion in Scene in SA magazine’s listing of the best lawyers in San Antonio, a Distinguished rating from Martindale-Hubble, and an amazing rating from Avvo. [ Attorney Bio ]
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