In 2017, my wife and I made an important financial decision.
We upgraded from having a will to establishing the Riddick Family Revocable Trust.
This picture was taken after we finished signing the documents. At the time, it felt good to have another important piece of our financial plan in place.
Fast forward to today, and I've come to appreciate even more why estate planning is an important part of financial wellness.
During my years as a financial wellness coach, I've met people who have spent months paying off debt, building emergency funds, and investing for retirement. Yet many of those same individuals have never created a will or reviewed the beneficiaries on their financial accounts.
When we think about financial wellness, we tend to focus on budgeting, saving, investing and getting out of debt.
But what happens to everything you've worked so hard to build if you're no longer here?
That's where estate planning comes in.
August is National Make-A-Will Month, making it a good time to ask yourself:
Do I have a will?
Are the beneficiaries on my retirement accounts, life insurance policies and other financial accounts still correct?
Have I considered whether a Payable-on-Death designation makes sense for my bank or credit union accounts?
Life changes. Marriage, divorce, children, grandchildren and the loss of a loved one can all be reasons to review and update your estate plan.
I don't believe estate planning is just for wealthy people. If you've worked hard to build something, you should also think about how to protect it and make things easier for the people you love.
If creating or updating your will has been sitting on your to-do list, maybe August is the month to finally take care of it.
The American Red Cross offers a free resource to help you get started, and Experian provides information about Payable-on-Death accounts. I'll put both resources in the comments.
A winning financial game plan isn't just about building wealth.
It's also about protecting the people you'll one day leave it to.
