Retirement planning and estate planning in California are related. Together, they protect you, reduce stress about the end of your life and help plan the future you want for your family.
Retirement planning vs. estate planning
With retirement plans, you focus on ways to solidify financial independence in your golden years. What you want is to design a plan that affords you a comfortable lifestyle.
Your estate encompasses the assets you own or control. The estate plan includes a variety of documents, such as a will, that assign all wishes for your estate. It can include items like a living trust, financial information and how you want assets managed when you can’t.
Avoid the mistakes of statement planning for retirement
If you want to prepare for retirement with smart estate planning, you should avoid certain mistakes. These include the following:
- Crafting a plan without counsel
- Failing to keep plans updated
- Forgetting to take taxes into account
- Granting the wrong trustee to your estate
- Having no plan
- Leaving assets to minors
- Leaving insurance policies out of the trust
- Making errors regarding beneficiaries
- Not coordinating trusts and plans
Passing financial assets
Putting together a package of financial assets is critical. To maximize benefits, your estate planning must include:
- A will: Without a will, assets can go through probate. That’s often a drawn-out, laborious and confusing process. Plus, it’s highly unlikely that the results will coincide with your wishes.
- Retirement beneficiaries: Your IRA or 401(k) likely has a designated beneficiary. Just make sure these accounts, which you may have set up a while ago, reflect your current objectives.
- List of finances and assets: Record all your accounts such as stocks, checking, savings and crypto and review who you want them assigned to. Write down how to access them so that there’s no confusion.
You may also want to put together wishes for the future care if you’re incapacitated. This may include a living will, health care proxy and power of attorney. You want a solid infrastructure that keeps you and loved ones living comfortably during your retirement and for years to come.