How Remote Life Complicates Estate Planning

Have you ever noticed how modern life makes things so spread out? Well, not just things, but people too. Just generally speaking here, families are scattered everywhere, people move abroad for work or love or cheaper rent, and everyone has fifty online accounts for everything from banking to grocery apps. It all feels normal until estate planning comes into the picture, then basically, everything’s complicated for reasons nobody ever warned anyone about. No, really, it’s absolutely true.

But really, it’s wild how one tiny detail, like someone living in another country, can turn simple tasks into a whole puzzle that nobody knows how to solve.

Digital Life Creates Unexpected Problems 

Oh yeah, so it’s kind of funny, because people assume estate planning is all about big stuff like houses and money, but honestly, the digital stuff is sometimes messier. Yeah, sure, this is fairly surprising, right? But yeah, everyone’s entire life is tied to passwords now. All those apps, bank logins, cloud folders, storage subscriptions, digital wallets, crypto accounts, browser autofill, phone authentication, all of it. Yeah, this little list could go on and on, too, honestly.

And most people never write any of that down for their family. Which, sure, makes sense because every so often, passwords need to be changed. But at the same time, they figure they’ll “get around to it,” but then life happens, and nobody wants to organize twenty-seven years of internet breadcrumbs. So the moment someone passes, their family basically has to become detectives. Which means that they’re guessing passwords, waiting for login codes that go to a phone nobody can unlock, arguing with customer support, trying to prove they’re not scammers. Sometimes companies will work with you, but sometimes not; it’s honestly really challenging. 

Being Far Away Makes Every Tiny Task Just So Much Harder

Okay, so now just add distance into the mix. Someone tries to handle everything from another state or another country, and well, nothing is simple. As in, it’s far from simple. Okay, what’s the problem here? Well, forms have to be signed, documents need to be notarized, some require apostilles, and some need to be mailed physically. There’s plenty of other hurdles here, too. And it’s always this slow, expensive back and forth that drags on forever. Even basic things turn into waiting three weeks for something to arrive.

Actually, it’s even worse if someone is dealing with something like an overseas heir inheriting real estate, because that person can’t just show up for an inspection or go unlock a door or meet a contractor who may or may not arrive on time. Well, sure, sometimes people will fly out, but that’s a lot of money too, or even staying in a hotel can rack up a lot, and for some, it’s not worth it. But yeah, there’s just a giant juggling act.

Plus Banks and Courts aren’t Built for Remote Anything

Now, sure, to a degree, banks are kind of modern, but it’s not entirely perfect, though. But the moment someone tries to handle an estate from outside the city limits. Well, that alone turns into a whole situation. Alright, but in what way? Well, phone calls don’t work because they want an in-person ID. But other things can happen, like online access gets blocked because the login location looks suspicious. 

But it’s not just the banks; the courts are such a major issue too because they still expect signatures on paper, with ink, on forms that can’t be emailed or digitally signed. Some states even refuse to let a non-resident serve as executor, which blows people’s minds because nobody sees that coming until it’s already a problem.