When was the last time you reviewed your estate plan. If the answer is you don’t remember or when you first created it with your attorney, you are just like thousands of other people. But reviewing your plan on a regular basis is vital.
There are a number of reasons why you must review your estate plan. Here are a few: laws change, there are major life events like birth, marriage, divorce or death. While you may know if any of these apply to you, how likely are you to know that tax laws may have changed? A good rule of thumb is to reach out to an estate planning attorney every three years just to review the plan to see if changes need to be made.
When you do, here are some things to consider.
- Who is your fiduciary? If you have an outdated plan, the person you named to deal with your legal assets may no longer be the right person.
- How old are your kids? When you created the plan, you may have included guardians for young children. Are they still necessary?
- Has your wealth grown? You may have increased assets which could require changes in your estate plan.
- Have you moved or are you planning to? If you have moved to a new state, it is very likely your estate plan needs revision.
- Is your life insurance still the best plan for you? You need to review life insurance policies to make sure they are still appropriate for your situation.
These are just a sampling of the factors that could be impacting the validity of your estate plan. Again, unless you have created that plan in the last few years in the state where you currently reside, it is best to have it reviewed by a qualified estate-planning attorney.