5 Ways To Spring Clean Your Estate Plan
Spring is here! A time to pack up your sweaters, spring forward, and tidy up your home. While you may feel the urge to re-organize as the warmer weather comes in, you may not have thought about the need to consider re-organizing your Estate Plan – but, it is definitely worth a thought (or two or three or four or five!)
Fiduciaries – Some of the most important decisions you make when building your estate plan are your fiduciary choices. Who is acting as your power of attorney for your medical and financial decisions? Who have you listed as guardian for your minor children? Spring is the perfect time to revisit those decisions to make sure they are in accordance with your wishes.
Distribution – Your estate plan isn’t just an organization of your assets. It’s the legacy you are leaving behind. How do you want to leave your legacy? Are there charities or organizations you’d want to benefit? Have the ways in which you want your children to receive their inheritance changed, or do they need to change due to circumstances in your children’s own lives such as an impending bankruptcy or divorce?
Tax and Law Changes – The Estate Tax Laws have changed dramatically in the past few years and law changes such as the SECURE Act may impact the success of your planning. When was the last time you updated your trust?
If you signed your estate plan documents in the 70s, 80s or 90s, then your documents are out of date and need to be updated as soon as possible.
If you signed your estate plan documents between 2000 and 2009, your estate plan documents may need to be revoked, amended, or restated because of the significant changes in federal and state estate tax law.
If you signed your estate plan documents between 2010 and 2017, understand that federal estate taxes, gift taxes, and generation-skipping transfer taxes went through significant changes during this time frame, and “portability” of the federal estate tax exemption between married couples was introduced. Ensuring that your estate plan documents take advantage of the opportunities made available from these changes is an important step in protecting your family and your wealth. State laws governing wills, trusts, health care directives, and powers of attorney may have also changed which could warrant some revisions to your estate planning documents.
Milestone Changes – Has there been a change in your relationship status since the last time you visited your planning? A birth, a death, marriage, divorce – Family dynamics are ever changing. It’s important that as those dynamics evolve, your estate planning reflects those changes.
Assets Changed – It may be time to assess your assets! Have you sold your home? Moved? Started a new business? Bought a new property? These changes need to be coordinated with your estate plan.
Don’t know where to start? Our team at Legacy Law can help! Call us at (615) 933-7636 or email clientservices@legacylawtn.com to schedule an appointment to discuss your Estate Plan.