Most Tampa estate planning attorneys recommend that their clients re-evaluate their plans every few years. Part of that review should include taking a look at your Revocable Living Trust to ensure it’s up-to-date.
However, in between these regular review periods, you might undergo a life change that should also trigger a review and possibly an update to your plan. Here are the most common events that should at least result in a call to your attorney to make sure that your plan will still work as intended:
- You just had a baby.
Becoming a parent presents a number of challenges. An important aspect of parenthood is looking after the welfare of your newborn. Taking care of your child isn’t limited to what you do in the present. You also have to secure their future. That’s why it makes sense to take a fresh look at your existing estate plan.
What if something happens to you and your spouse before the child reaches legal age? It’s a difficult question, but one that every parent should prepare for by ensuring that there are guardians named who can raise the child, and also that there are provisions in the trust to keep the child’s money safe until he or she reaches a responsible age.
- Someone in the family passed on.
Grief momentarily stops us from making sound decisions, or sometimes any decisions at all. However, examining your plan after someone in the family dies is an important task to handle once you are feeling better. For example, if an elderly parent has died and left you a sizeable estate, you may now want to speak to your attorney about incorporating those assets into your own trust.
- Your financial status has changed.
Our finances ebb and flow. One year, your business may be doing great. The following year, it’s not making sizable revenue. Or, perhaps you’re ready to retire and looking at options for downsizing. Whenever your finances change, it’s time to take a fresh look at your trust to ensure that it still meets your needs.
- You got married or went through a divorce.
A change in your marital status means a change in your estate plan. In fact, you may need to update all of your legal, financial, and real estate documents. Whether you’re moving on from a bad marriage or moving in with your new partner, you want to ensure that your finances are protected and that everyone you care about is properly accounted for in your new plan.
- Your trust is really old.
Do you still remember when you created your living trust? Trusts that are more than twenty years old likely have outdated tax provisions. Old trusts may lack incapacity planning provisions, too. For that reason, any trust that’s over five years old should be reviewed by an attorney as soon as possible.
Getting Help
If you’ve experienced any of these life changes and you’d like help reviewing your existing trust to determine if changes need to be made, our Tampa estate planning attorneys are here to assist you. Simply call our office at (813) 438-8503 to schedule a consultation.