Your estate plan shouldn’t be a set of documents that you complete, sign and file away forever. Many different reasons to update your estate plan can occur over the course of your lifetime or even a typical year in an average person’s life. There are times in life when it’s a good idea to move updating these estate plans off of your to-do-list and put it on the done list instead. These include the following.
Having Young Children
You need to address the care and custody of your minor children and determine what assets you might distribute to them if and when you pass away. This should be done through a will. If you have recently added a child to your family, now is a great time to update.
Your Estate Is Valued at Greater Than $1 Million
There are many different estate planning strategies available to you if you have a large estate. The strategies and tactics for each of these should be discussed with an experienced lawyer who understands how you might trigger certain estate tax issues and be able to keep more of your money through these strategies.
It’s Been At Least 5 Or 6 Years Since You Created Your Estate Planning Documents
Major changes have been made in Massachusetts since 2012 governing probate trusts and wills within the commonwealth. Many of these were favorable but it could mean this is a good opportunity to update your estate planning documents.
You Have Concerns Related to Long Term Care Expenses
Tax and estate planning is not necessarily consistent automatically with long term care planning. The estate plan that was generated decades ago when your family was young is not likely to cover all of the key issues as you approach older years and the potential for long term care.
You Have A Significant Portion of Your Assets Stored in Retirement Plans
Make sure that you recognize that your trust and will are not the only things that control most of the assets at the time that you pass away. The new SECURE Act has important ramifications for your retirement planning, and this is one reason why speaking with a Massachusetts estate planning attorney can be helpful.
