How Frequently Should You Review Estate Planning Documents?

Just because you’ve completed your will signing and secured all your estate planning documents does not mean your estate planning process is over. It is important to revisit these documents periodically to make sure they still apply to your current situation and wishes.

Reviewing your estate plan

A good general rule is to either review your estate plan once a year, or after every significant life change, whichever is more frequent. These changes could include a marriage, a divorce, the birth of a new child, the death of a beneficiary, a new job or a move to a new location. These types of major life events are also very like to affect your estate plan, at least to some degree. So when these changes occur, make sure you take the time to review your estate plans and make any changes necessary to adjust for your new life situation.

A failure to adjust your estate plan to account for these changes could result in your assets not being divided according to your current wishes after your death. For example, if you do not update your estate plan after you get divorced, your former spouse will still likely be a beneficiary for a lot of your assets. You might not also have accounted for newly opened investment accounts, or a sudden windfall of cash.

Stay on top of your estate planning and you can avoid giving your family members an unnecessarily difficult time trying to determine what your wishes truly were after you pass away.

For further guidance, meet with a knowledgeable Tampa estate planning lawyer at BaumannKangas Estate Law.