Personal Finance Essentials
When to Review Your Estate Plan
Your Estate Plan
Has an Expiration Date
An estate plan is not a one‑time task. Life changes, and your plan needs to change with it. Update your estate plan if, since you last signed your documents, there have been changes in your:
You should also review your documents if five years have passed, because you may want to change decisions you had previously made – such as which charities to support, which family members to name or how your assets should be divided.
In addition to reviewing your formal estate planning documents, review the beneficiary designations on all of your retirement accounts and IRAs. These designations control who receives those assets when you die – and they override your will entirely. A will that names your current spouse as your heir means nothing if an old beneficiary designation still lists your ex‑spouse. Review them every time your life circumstances change.