Financial Planning

5 Steps to Organize Estate Documents for Your Executor

5 Steps to Organize

One of the greatest gifts you can provide for your loved ones is careful planning and organization of your estate documents. In preparation for your passing. During a time of grief, it can be incredibly stressful for your executor to identify and locate all your most important paperwork and assets. While also making the necessary arrangements for your estate. With the proper preparation, you can ease the burden on those closest to you, ensure that your wishes are carried out. As well as streamline the process of executing your estate.

Here are five steps to make sure your important documents are accessible, organized, and prepared for your estate executor.

Step 1: Create a checklist of important documents (and their locations)

When it comes to organizing your estate documents, the first question most physicians ask is: What do I need to include? Of course, there are essential documents that everyone should include their estate. Such as a will, birth certificate, and financial account information.

However, the exact documents will vary from person to person. For example, if you are a business owner, a veteran, or a naturalized citizen, certain additional documents will be necessary to include in your estate paperwork. The following is a starting list of potential documents that you should copy and catalogue for your estate executor.

Personal Information

Names and contact info of closest family and friends
Names and contact info of all lawyers, accountants, doctors, etc
Access instructions for in-home safe

Legal Papers

Will and/or trusts
Details of specific bequests
Deceased’s final instructions
Funeral contract
Copy of driver’s license
Organ/tissue donation record
Social security card
Birth certificate
Marriage certificate
Military service papers
Court documents for adoptions and divorce (including any property settlement agreements, name changes, prenuptial agreements, etc)
Passport, citizenship, immigration, and/or alien registration papers

Financial Accounts & Records

Bank accounts – checking, savings, CDs, etc
Investment/brokerage accounts: IRAs, 401(k), 403(b), SEP, HSA, FSA etc
Pension or profit-sharing plans
Stock and bonds
Annuities
Credit and debit card accounts
Survivor annuity benefit papers
Veteran benefit records
Disability payment documents
Current income statements
Current and Previous IRS income tax returns (including gift tax returns, if applicable)
Property tax records
Loan Papers

Property Records

All real estate property deeds
All vehicle registrations
Mortgage documents (including promissory/loan paperwork)
Property leases
Documentation of storage units and key locations
Student loans
Documentation of valuable collections (i.e. coins, stamps, etc).

Insurance Records

Life insurance
Disability insurance
Medical and dental insurance
Homeowner’s insurance
Auto insurance
Asset appraisals
All other insurance policies (veterans, funeral, umbrella liability, long-term care, etc)

Moreover, as you complete this checklist with the relevant paperwork for your estate, be sure to include copies or the location of each document for your executor.

Important Reminders

Although this may seem like a long list, it is important to provide as much information as possible about your estate and affairs. For this reason, organization is key. Imagine being tasked with executing a loved one’s estate and then being handed an old box filled with a mountain of random papers from various decades. Compare that to the experience of opening a locked file cabinet. To find all the relevant estate documents in organized folders with a guiding checklist.

Experience

Which experience do you want to provide for your loved ones? While this checklist may be lengthy, it will be far easier for you to arrange these documents in advance. Rather for your executor to search high and low for all the necessary paperwork after you have passed away.

Learn about advanced tax planning strategies to get the most out of your investments: 5 Tax Planning Strategies for Physicians

Step 2: List the names and contact information of key associates

While you may not be able to plan for every issue that might occur during the execution of your estate, you can make it easy to locate and communicate with all your most important professional advisors. This can also help your executor notify professional associates. And key proxies of your passing in a timely manner.

This list of key contacts should include the name, phone number, address, and email of associates including:

Executor
Financial advisor
Health care proxy
Durable power of attorney
Attorney
Accountant
Physician/Dentist/Therapist
Clergy
Insurance Agent

Accordingly, it is important to make multiple copies of this contact list, share the location and access details with loved ones. Periodically update the list for accuracy.

Step 3: Catalog your digital asset inventory

In addition to physical and financial assets, many physicians also store valuable and personal information in various digital devices and social media accounts. Make a list of account information. Including usernames, passwords, and security questions for the following digital assets:

Devices (Home and office computers, cell phones, tablets)
Cloud Storage
Email Accounts
Social Media Accounts
Digital Subscriptions
External hard drives

Digital Inventory

Of course, it is essential to keep this digital inventory in a highly secure place. As well as accessible only to your most trusted inner circle. You should also document how you wish your online presence, photos, and files to be handled after your passing. Some people choose to have their accounts shut down. While others prefer to keep their photos and profile accessible to loved ones. Either way, it is important to make sure your loved ones can access these digital assets and carry out your wishes.

Keep Reading: Estate Planning for Your Digital Assets.

Step 4: Ensure all documents are organized and accessible

Once you have taken inventory of all the most important documents for your estate, it is important to make sure that your closest loved ones can access these documents. These documents should be sorted into the relevant sections (i.e. insurance policies, property documentation, financial accounts) and kept in a place that is secure, but available to a select few trusted people.

Reminders

Remember, it is important to provide more than one person with the necessary information to access your estate documents. If only one person knows how to gain access to your most important documents and something happens to this individual, your executor or successor executor will have tremendous difficulty managing your affairs in the wake of your passing.

Certain documents may require even more immediate access in the event of an emergency. During a medical crisis, a doctor may ask to see a copy of your healthcare power of attorney or health care proxy before they can administer care. To ensure that your medical wishes are observed, supply a copy of your durable power of attorney to both your healthcare proxy and your successor proxy.

Step 5: Regularly update your estate documents

Moreover, organizing and cataloging your estate documents is only helpful as long as the paperwork is accurate. When physicians take a “set it and forget it” approach to estate planning, they often fail to update their estate documents with relevant changes. Big life changes such as marriage, divorce, or onset of a disability will require the addition of certain documents. Even minor changes such as switching accountants or purchasing a new vehicle will require certain updates to your records.

Organization

Therefore, the more detailed and organized your estate documents are, the easier it will be to add or update information as necessary. Schedule time once or twice a year to review your estate documents for accuracy. If your affairs and assets have not changed substantially, this can be as simple as including your most current tax return. Now, if there are major amendments to your estate planning, this process can spare your loved ones the serious headache of sifting throughout outdated or inaccurate paperwork.

To conclude:

Finally, estate planning may not be a particularly pleasant process. However, it is absolutely critical to ensure that your most important wishes are observed after you have passed away. Therefore, providing your executor(s) with detailed, organized documentation of your affairs can eliminate stress, confusion, and delays in the administration of your estate. To learn more about physician estate planning, schedule with one of our trusted advisor’s today.

5 Steps to Organize Estate Documents for Your Executor