Putting together a solid estate plan is a crucial part of growing up. However, there will be times when you need to go back and revise certain provisions in your plan. Here are some important life events that will require you to make changes to your estate plan in Delaware.
Getting married
Updating your estate plan may be one of the last things on your mind after getting married, but having a significant other can cause a lot of changes. In your estate plan, you’ll need to list your spouse as one of your beneficiaries if something happens to you. You may also want to include any joint marital assets you’ll accrue over the course of your marriage into your estate plan.
Having kids
Having kids is another huge milestone that will require some updates to your estate planning. You’ll need to add your children as beneficiaries, and you’ll need to name guardians to take care of them if something happens to you and their other parent. If you happen to have grandchildren, that is also an opportunity for you to add them as beneficiaries in your estate plan if you want to leave them some assets as well.
Getting divorced
If you and your partner decide to end your marriage, you may want to remove him or her from certain aspects of your estate plan. Many people choose to leave a large portion of their assets to their spouse if they were to pass away, so you may not want to leave your assets to someone to whom you are no longer married.
Especially if you end up getting remarried, then you’ll likely want to leave your assets to your new spouse. However, if you have children with your former spouse, then you may not want to remove your ex entirely from your plan in case you die, and he or she must take over as the children’s sole parent.
An estate plan is something that is always getting adjusted and updated throughout your lifetime. You should take it upon yourself to review your estate plan occasionally throughout the year and consider whether it needs any adjustments due to events that have transpired.