Over the past decade, we have certainly seen a proliferation of what is coined today as ‘digital assets’. When it comes to asset allocation we have all learned about stocks, bonds, cash, and real estate, but how about the acquisition of those assets involved with digital platforms? The most recent articles on your smart money moves discussed the bitcoin, but you have a virtual cornucopia of digital assets including I-Tunes, Amazon, Paypal, EBay, and even assets such as the very blog you are reading. How can you plan to make sure your heirs get the most of your digital assets as the average is north of $30,000 today?
The first consideration is to ask yourself just what is your digital estate plan? As it stands today, most state laws don’t specify whether or not you need a digital executor. Currently, there is legislation being worked on called The Uniform Fiduciary Access To Digital Assets Act to create some consistent rules about digital assets. Will your executor have a way to get your usernames, passwords, and security questions when you die? Do you have the right executor or do you actually need a digital executor who is more tech savvy when it comes to securing these assets? Is there a specific place you store all of your content or inventory? All of these questions need to be answered in your estate plan, but here are four simple smart money moves to get you started.
- MAKE AN INVENTORY
- What are all the digital assets you own? (I tunes, eBay, PayPal, etc.)
- There are programs including Password Box and Secure Safe that can help OR use the oXYGen Financial Secure On Line Safety Box as a way to store this important data.
- Store Username ID/Passwords/Security Questions somewhere safe
- Don’t put these in your will as they can become a matter of public record.
- WHAT DO YOU WANT TO HAPPEN WITH THESE ASSETS?
- Do you want memorialize your Facebook? Or do you want all of your social media cancelled. I have a friend of mine who died 3 years ago and is still on Linked In.
- Read the TERMS OF AGREEMENT- is your account nontransferable? What will this mean to your heirs?
- Do you want your family to see your e-mails?
- Do you want your inventory to continue to be sold on eBay or just stop the account?
- CONSIDER ANY ESTATE MANAGEMENT TOOLS OFFERED BY THE COMPANY
- Google now has an inactive accounts manager
- What will the company do with your stuff?
- Do they have a policy or a department you can contact to better understand how to plan this in your estate.
- DESIGNATE A DIGITAL EXECUTOR
- Will you want this to be your regular executor?
- Do you need someone who is more tech savvy?
- This can slow up the overall distribution of your estate assets.
- Should you check your state lost and found?
As technology is becoming more prevalent in our daily lives, so will the value of your digital assets. Many people do not take this very seriously today, but just consider what you have spent on i-tunes in the past three or four years. Would you want your record or CD collection to just be thrown away? Of course not. Make a smart money move and sometime over the next year sit with your financial advisor and/or attorney to discuss your overall digital estate plan.
Written by:
Ted Jenkin
Request a FREE consultation: www.oxygenfinancial.net
