It is important to update an estate plan which can be as important as setting one up to begin with. There are certain times to review an estate plan that it is important for estate planners to be familiar with in additional to regular reviews of their estate plan.
When to update an estate plan
There are several important times in the lives of estate planners that they should consider updating their estate plan including:
- When they move to another state – moving to another state may trigger different requirements for a will to be valid, as an example, or tax rules or other laws that differ. The estate planner should ensure that their estate plan complies with the laws and requirement in their new state.
- Relationships change – relationships change over the course of a lifetime which is why estate planners should modify their estate plan to fit those changes which may change beneficiary designations or who certain assets go to.
- Assets or liabilities change – over time, the estate planner’s assets and liabilities may change and their estate plan should include these changes. Whenever the estate planner has a significant change to their assets or liabilities, they should update their estate plan.
- The executor or trustee designation becomes inappropriate – as time passes, an executor, trustee, personal representative or guardianship designation may grow outdated and need changing. Estate planners should review their estate plan and make any necessary changes.
There are many times that an estate planner should consider an update to their estate plan. In addition to regularly looking it over, estate planners should take a look when a major life event warrants an accompanying change to their estate plan.