Planning your estate in Florida is just the beginning of taking control of your future. Guaranteeing that your plan correlates with your final wishes requires you to keep it updated.
Changes throughout your life may impact decisions you thought you already solidified. Addressing these changes can help you avoid the consequences of an outdated plan.
Maintain your plan’s function
Significant life events such as marriage, the birth of children, adoption, divorce, remarriage and disability could change how you feel about who you have listed as beneficiaries on your plan. Modifying your estate plan to remove or add plan participants can keep your money and assets with the people you care about.
Even if no major life changes happen, you should still periodically review your plan. Moving to a new state and changing tax laws could also influence your plan’s function. Over time, you may accumulate wealth via an inheritance, career developments or investments. Working these increases into your plan can better protect your assets from fraud. U.S. News suggests that you review your plan at least every 5 years.
Increase your plan’s efficiency
Even if your estate plan is up-to-date and accurate, you may find that reviewing it provides ideas for how to improve its efficiency. With the task of planning out of the way, you can review different strategies and determine if moving parts of your plan around will improve its function.
Because coordinating an estate plan requires a lot of factors, you may choose to enlist the help of an attorney. Drawing upon the experience of a legal professional can help you verify that you do not miss any important steps along the way.