As stated in our previous webinar, Turning Limes into Margaritas: Recipes for Estate Planning You Can do Today, please see below for a checklist on estate planning you can use from home.
- Talk to Your Heirs
- About how can they get information in case of incapacity or death
- Whom should they contact?
- Where are your important documents kept?
- How can they access electronic information?
- About your wishes
- For end-of-life care?
- For burial/cremation?
- For funeral arrangements?
- About how to access basic financial information
- Who is your accountant?
- Who is your financial advisor?
- What life insurance do you have and where are the policies?
- What debts and charitable pledges are outstanding?
- About how can they get information in case of incapacity or death
- Get Organized
- Have a paper file of information to access in case of incapacity or death. Include instructions on accessing your digital information, such as through your password manager.
- Use a password manager (e.g., LastPass, 1Password) to keep your passwords in one place.
- Set up the emergency contact feature.
- Document access to devices and location of any hidden cash or tangibles in secure notes.
- Review emergency contact features on all email and social media accounts.
- Digitize and back up important family photos and videos. If using cloud backup, ensure successor access through password management.
- Catalog Your Tangible Personal Property
- Take a picture of all valuables.
- Create a paper or digital book of tangibles. For each item:
- Describe the item.
- If it has a story, share the story.
- Attach any proof of ownership and receipt.
- Review insurance coverage for valuables.
- If you want items to pass to named individuals on death, write a letter as instructed by your attorney. Invite your family to tell you the items that are meaningful to them as you make your decisions.
- Review Asset Titling
- If you have a revocable trust, review any assets that need to be transferred to the trust.
- Call your retirement plan custodians and insurance companies to ask for a copy of the beneficiaries named on record. Send a copy to your attorney.