Estate Planning is the process of working with an attorney to create a legally-binding plan for what will happen to your remaining belongings and money after you pass away. Estate Planning can be achieved through several different methods, but always for one purpose: protecting your family and loved ones. Sometimes, however, those loved ones change.
Your Estate Plan is a reflection of your life, so it should change as your life does as well. Unfortunately, it does not automatically update. You need to see a local attorney to update it yourself. Here are 5 times when you will want to update your Estate Plan as soon as possible:
When You Get Divorced
You might think it is a fair assumption that when you divorce someone, you no longer want them to inherit everything you own. However, that is just what will happen unless you manually update your Estate Plan following a divorce.
When You Get Married
Whenever you get married, it is important to add your spouse to your Estate Plan! This is just one of the many things on the Marriage To Do List, but it is an important one.
When You Welcome a New Child into Your Family
Whether it is through birth, adoption, marriage, guardianship, surrogacy, or anything else, having a new child in your family is always exciting. It is important to update your Estate Plan to include them so that they are not left out of anything. This is especially important for blended families, where step-children may not always be eligible to inherit your assets without being included in your Estate Plan.
When You Change Careers
Any major lifestyle or career change warrants an update to the old Estate Plan. Since your Estate Plan is dictating what will happen to your assets, you need to update it whenever there is a major change (in either direction) of the scope of those assets. Make sure your Estate Plan reflects your current position and abilities, not past or potential future ones.
When You Move States
Since probate court works differently in every state, every state has their own rules for Estate Planning. When you move to a new state, you need to have a local attorney look over your Estate Plan and make sure that it is legally valid where you live now.
Get the Help That You Need
At Alvarez Law Group, we believe in preserving your wealth and protecting your future. That means having an Estate Plan that is up-to-date at any given moment. You don’t want something unexpected to happen while you’re trying to find time to go in and update it. For help making sure your Estate Plan is where it needs to be, contact Alvarez Law Group today! We have experience, compassion, and results.
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