A checklist to review before meeting an estate planning attorney
Do I need to make or update any of the following:
- Will
- Financial Power of Attorney
- Advance Medical Directive (Healthcare Power of Attorney, Living Will and HIPAA Privacy Authorization)
- Revocable Living Trust (for probate or family inheritance reasons)
- Buy-sell agreement for business owners
- Funeral preplanning
- Guardian for minor children
- Calculate net worth, including retirement assets, pensions and life insurance, especially those accounts that will continue for benefit of a surviving spouse
- Review and update beneficiary designations on retirement plans and life insurance.
- Review how property is owned when there is more than one owner (real estate, vehicles, investment accounts)
- Long term care insurance
- Note the location of important documents
- Assemble copies of divorce decrees, separation agreements, pre- and post-nuptial agreements
- List of account numbers, location of the accounts, and passwords/userids for online accounts (Snapfish, Shutterfly, Facebook, LinkedIn, AOL, Yahoo, Gmail, etc)
- Make arrangements for someone else to have access to your safe deposit box
- Make a list of your monthly streams of income and regular outflows
- Make a particular note of outstanding loans, payment amount and due date
- List your tax records including name of the tax preparer
- Make arrangements for veterinary care and instructions for care of your pets.
