An illness or other major event may require the key players in your life and estate to have to reach for up to date information. Fall is a good time to catch up and review the resource you previously created — or to create one now.
What kind of information and materials may be needed? The list can be extensive based upon your life activities and your assets. But the core is easy and powerful to have at hand.
Gather in one file, secure on-line storage or other accessible location the following:
Estate Documents: Powers of Attorney for Healthcare and for Property, Living Trust Declaration, Last Will & Testament, Transfer On Death Instruments and Advance Directives. It’s a good time to review them to make sure that updates can be done, if necessary. And be sure to make notes about the location of the originals.
Personal Information: Birth Certificate, Military Discharge Papers, SSN information, prior Divorce paperwork, Immigration and Naturalization paperwork. Advance information concerning cremation or burial or other plans are also useful.
Key Individuals: Identify the persons who are key sources of information if something should happen. This include name and contact information for clergy and affiliations, financial advisors, business and property partners, accountant, attorney, and employment information and family contact information, to name a few.
Business & Financial Information: Contact information and the status of your interest in corporations and LLCs, partnerships, and joint ventures are important. Include copies of the business paperwork or where to find them. Financial accounts and the nature of the accounts where assets are held; and consider including copies of beneficiary designations for those accounts as well. Consider information about personal loans to or from others, so that these matters don’t fall through the cracks. And don’t forget insurance policy information, whether life insurance, personal property and real property insurance binders, and key man policy information.
Debt Information: Include copies of or information concering mortgages, personal property loans, credit cards and credit facilities.
This is a start. It’s not one-size-fits-all. And the more complete that you can be, the better your family and the people that are part of your estate planning will be at bringing the important information to use when necessary. This way, the important people around you can focus on you and your spouse and children, instead of having to chase documents and information.
Reach out to your Estate Planning Attorney to be sure to start the discussion. Don’t have one? Call or email to Attorney Marc Sherman.
