Happy New Year! Boy, I’m looking forward to what’s to come in 2026, and I’ve resolved to offer you more resources to help you get your affairs in order. Hey, it’s Season 3 of the BoomerTime podcast and in this episode, I’m offering some New Year’s–style estate planning resolutions designed for individuals who either have no estate plan or have not updated their plan in many years.
1. Commit to Creating a Basic Estate Plan (Will or Trust)
- Why it matters: Establishes who controls your assets, who receives them, and under what terms.
- Why to complete and keep current: Life circumstances, laws, and asset structures change over time.
- Risks if ignored: State intestacy laws determine distribution; increased costs, delays, and family conflict.
2. Update an Outdated Will or Trust
- Why it matters: Old documents may no longer reflect your intentions or current law.
- Why to complete and keep current: Changes in family structure, wealth, and tax rules can render plans ineffective.
- Risks if ignored: Unintended beneficiaries, disinheritance of loved ones, or litigation.
3. Name or Review Fiduciaries (Executors, Trustees, Agents)
- Why it matters: Fiduciaries control decision-making when you cannot.
- Why to complete and keep current: Prior choices may be deceased, incapacitated, or inappropriate.
- Risks if ignored: Court-appointed fiduciaries, mismanagement, or family disputes.
Estate Planning New Year’s Resolutions
For Older Adults, Caregivers, and Second Marriages
1. Resolve to Put a Core Estate Plan in Place (or Finally Finish It)
- Why it matters: Aging, illness, and caregiving realities make “waiting” risky.
- Why to complete and keep current: Even a basic will or trust provides clarity and authority.
- Risks if ignored: Court involvement, intestacy, and crisis-driven decisions by others.
2. Update an Estate Plan That Was Created “Years Ago”
- Why it matters: Many plans predate retirement, remarriage, or caregiving needs.
- Why to complete and keep current: Old documents often fail under modern family dynamics.
- Risks if ignored: Plans that unintentionally favor one side of the family or exclude caregivers.
3. Clarify Planning for Second Marriages and Blended Families
- Why it matters: Competing expectations between spouses and adult children are common.
- Why to complete and keep current: Clear instructions prevent “winner-takes-all” outcomes.
- Risks if ignored: Surviving spouse disinherits children—or children disinherit spouse.
4. Clearly Distinguish Separate Property vs. Marital or Joint Assets
- Why it matters: Second marriages often involve assets brought into the marriage.
- Why to complete and keep current: Intentional classification avoids future disputes.
- Risks if ignored: Litigation over ownership; unintended redistribution of family wealth.
5. Name the Right Decision-Makers—Not Just the “Default” Ones
- Why it matters: Caregivers are often the most involved but not legally empowered.
- Why to complete and keep current: The best caregiver is not always the best fiduciary.
- Risks if ignored: Court-appointed guardians or agents with little insight or availability.
6. Execute or Update Financial Powers of Attorney
- Why it matters: Bills, benefits, and caregiving expenses do not stop during incapacity.
- Why to complete and keep current: Banks increasingly scrutinize POAs.
- Risks if ignored: Frozen accounts; caregiver paying expenses personally; conservatorship.
7. Execute or Update Health Care Powers and Advance Directives
- Why it matters: Medical decisions often fall to caregivers in moments of crisis.
- Why to complete and keep current: Clear guidance reduces guilt and conflict.
- Risks if ignored: Family disputes, unwanted medical interventions, court involvement.
8. Plan Explicitly for Incapacity—Not Just Death
- Why it matters: Cognitive decline is far more likely than sudden death.
- Why to complete and keep current: Incapacity planning protects dignity and autonomy.
- Risks if ignored: Emergency guardianships and loss of personal control.
9. Address Long-Term Care and Medicaid Planning Early
- Why it matters: Caregiving often accelerates financial depletion.
- Why to complete and keep current: Early planning preserves choices and family stability.
- Risks if ignored: Forced spend-down, loss of assets, caregiver burnout.
10. Inventory Assets, Debts, and Care Resources
Risks if ignored: Lost accounts, unpaid obligations, inefficient care decisions..
Why it matters: Caregivers cannot plan without accurate information.
Why to complete and keep current: Assets shift during retirement and illness.
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Disclaimer: The information provided on this website and on the podcast is not intended to be considered as legal advice or constitute an attorney/client relationship as provided under the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct.
