Working through an estate plan review is often a big endeavor. Some people believe it is a bigger struggle than it really is, though. Unfortunately, this puts many people off from doing reviews as often as they should.
In reality, you do not need to do reviews that often. On top of that, you can prioritize your review to save time, making the whole process go by much quicker.
What should you focus on?
Forbes discusses what areas of estate plan review you may want to tackle first. If you order your review according to the importance of the components, it can help you shave off unnecessary hours you would otherwise spend on it.
Generally, the biggest categories you should focus on are your beneficiaries, your assets and other crucial components like your will or trust. Along with beneficiaries, you can also include named figures like your healthcare proxy.
When should you review?
But how do you know when it is time to review? If nothing big is happening or changing in your life, you can simply do a brief review once every three years, according to experts. But if you face periods of abrupt or extreme change, you will likely want to give your plan a review with those changes in mind.
The aforementioned categories are important because they often face the most changes. For example, beneficiaries are often your loved ones and people you are close to in life. This list of people is constantly changing, with people exiting and entering your life at all times. Thus, you want to ensure it is up to date with any minute changes you may have forgotten.
Prioritizing your plan in this way helps you review when the time comes.