Few important aspects of life are simply “set it and forget it”, and comprehensive estate plans are no different. You want fluidity and additional attention to detail as your circumstances evolve through the years. So how often should you update your estate plan? Even with customized solutions provided by a qualified estate planning attorney, it might be more often than you think to achieve the best results.
How Often Should You Update Your Estate Plan?
Generally, it’s recommended that you check in with your attorney at least annually to make sure your estate plan is still on track with your goals. However, significant life changes require a closer analysis of your financial and health directives. Here are a few other milestones that may require an update to your estate plan:
- Birth of a child
- Death of a spouse or loved one
- Receiving an inheritance
- Purchasing property or losing property
- Buying a vacation home
- Moving out of state
- Children’s marriages and adding grandchildren to the family
- Health challenges
- Employment changes, such as a new promotion or retirement
- Personal divorce or the divorce of previously-designated beneficiaries
- Downsizing to assisted living or some other form of long-term care
Updates Your Florida Estate Planning Attorney May Recommend
An estate plan is an essential tool designed to make life easier for your and your loved ones. With each review, your lawyer might suggest any number of things, such as:
- Confirm beneficiary designations on your retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and other assets.
- Update your will to reflect the current distribution of your assets.
- Review the performance of any trusts you established to ensure they’re still meeting the goals for which they were created.
- Consider revising the trust documents to reflect changes in any applicable laws or tax structure.
- If you have children, evaluate the guardianship designation and minor trusts to make sure they remain appropriate for your children’s current needs.
- Review your health care power of attorney or health care surrogate to make sure it’s still valid and designate a trusted individual with the power to make medical decisions for you if needed.
Your estate planning attorney is your trusted partner in creating financial security for you and your family. Take a little time each year to make sure all your wishes are upheld.