This week on the One Minute Retirement Tip podcast, it’s time for a financial checkup. 

Today, I’m talking about updating your estate, your will, and ensuring that your spouse and kids will be taken care of when you pass from this world. Even people who own businesses, real estate, and who are wealthy often don’t have their estate plan up to date, nor is it working in their favor, helping to minimize taxes and headaches at their death. 

Jimi Hendrix died without a will and the battle over his estate continued for over 30 years. Bob Marley, Pablo Picasso, Michael Jackson, Sonny Bono...all died without a will. 

Plenty of people are way behind on their estate updates, or worse, like these celebrities, they have nothing in place at all. I think it’s probably a combination of Type B personality types and the difficulty of facing your own death that keeps people with their head stuck in the sand. 

I know all you Type A’s like me got that will in place, but when’s the last time you reviewed your will and your estate plan? 

It’s important to do that on an annual basis. People and circumstances change. You may have a troubled child or a relative who has an addiction problem, and a large influx of cash would ruin their life or kill them. Your spouse’s income needs may not be covered if you died. These are real problems, but they’re problems that are solvable with some advance planning. 

Tax laws and the size of your estate along with its complexity is always in flux, so what was relevant when you set up a will, trust, and beneficiary designations 10 or 20 years ago may be woefully outdated today. 

I recommend reviewing your estate documents and beneficiary designations annually, then meeting with your estate attorney every 3 to 5 years or when you have a major life change. 

That’s it for today, Thanks for listening! My name is Ashley Micciche and this is the One Minute Retirement Tip.

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