Joint ownership might be the most common form of incapacity planning. If your elderly Aunt Mary fears that her health will fail, she might add the name of your sister Alice, who lives nearby, to her checking and brokerage accounts. Then Alice can take care of things for Aunt Mary, if necessary.
However, joint accounts always go to the survivor. If Aunt Mary dies, those accounts will go to Alice and not to any other heirs. That’s true regardless of what Aunt Mary puts in her will.
Relatively small bank accounts might be held in joint name, so there’s ready access to cash in case of incapacity. In addition, elderly individuals should request direct deposits of income and automatic bill payments from checking accounts. Such arrangements can reduce the need for joint titling.
