Is it Time to Update Your Estate Plan?

May 17, 2023 12:00 pm Published by

You may have done your estate plan once and figured it was one and done. But just like about everything else in life, it requires reasonable consistent maintenance. When life changes, it may be time to change your estate plan. If you don’t, someone you wanted to look out for may not benefit from the generosity you wish to bestow upon them.

Why Update

Perhaps the biggest reason to update your estate plan at a reasonable time frame is because federal or state changes may take place under your nose. Or maybe something else has changed in your life that you would really like to take account of that you did not earlier. Adding a new family member, changing your place of residence, and different tax exemptions could all be reasons why you should update your estate. For example, in 2018 different federal gift tax exemptions came into effect which differed greatly from previous exemptions.

When to Update

Knowing when to update is just as important as knowing why to update your estate plan. Generally, large life events, legal, regulatory or tax changes, large changes in assets, or changes affecting appointees are perfect times to update your estate.

Life events can include anything from marriage, divorce, retirement, birth, adoption, death, or even moving to a different state. If any of these occur, it’s a good reason to update your estate plan.

Major changes in assets could mean a multitude of things such as receiving an inheritance yourself, selling a business or making it public, purchasing property, especially in a different state, rolling over retirement assets, and purchasing or surrendering life insurance to name a few.

As mentioned, legal, regulatory, or tax changes are prime times for updating your estate plan. Tax rate changes on the federal or your state level as well as any change in property laws that could affect you is a great time to update.

Lastly, when events such as changes affecting a trustee, guardian of a child, executor of your estate, attorney, and health care proxy or agent occur, it is a good time to update your estate plan.

If you need help updating your estate plan, then Inheritance Loans can help, just call us at 877-638-7760 and we will make it as painless as possible!

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This post was written by Inheritance Loans USA

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