It’s pretty much like that annual medical check-up or every-so-often teeth cleaning. Or like that periodic oil change and kick-the-tires car inspection at the local auto shop.
We’re talking revisiting your estate plan after all that initial effort you expended on working with a proven estate administration attorney to craft a sound and tailored strategy that makes optimal sense for you and your family.
Here’s the bottom line with that: It’s wonderful that it’s done, but you still have to check in periodically to ensure that it’s 100 percent up to date and with continued viability regarding all key details.
In short, the answer to that blog headline query posed above is this: never.
And that is actually heartening rather than discouraging news, since a well-considered and thoughtfully crafted plan requires only periodic review and updating after its completion.
In other words, all the hard work has already been done. Rather than having to paint the house again, you likely just need to do a few brush strokes here and there from time to time to keep things well in order.
As noted in a recent article discussing estate plan review and updating, “change is a constant thing.” Given that, “a periodic review of your estate plan is necessary and will give you some peace of mind.”
Just consider the material changes that often occur in families over the years. Family members die, with new additions being born. Divorces and new marriages occur. New sources of wealth and income are realized and sometimes lost. Homes/businesses might be acquired or sold.
Such things can require adjustments to estate planning documents like wills, trusts, powers of attorney, beneficiary designations and more.
Keeping an estate plan timely and relevant is obviously of high importance. Checking in from time to time with an estate planning attorney (and preferably the lawyer who knows your family well and worked with you to craft the plan that already holds you in good stead) to review relevant information can help keep things running smoothly.
