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Why You Should Review Your Will at Retirement
If you are nearing retirement-plan'>retirement, you will begin to realize that a lot about your life is going to change. You will no longer live in the nine-to-five world and you will finally be getting the returns on your years of saving and investment. It also means that many of the older terms of your will may need serious reconsideration.
Why is that? Our wills are actually a critical part of estate and financial planning and must accurately reflect not only our wishes but also our current circumstances. When we enter into our retirement years, we may terminate some insurance policies, sell off certain assets and make some new decisions about our medical care or health directives. All of these things will need to be reflected in a will.
A majority of people will purchase and maintain a life insurance policy, and for some that will stand until the time of their death. Others, however, may opt for term insurance that will end at the same time they enter into retirement. They may have chosen this arrangement because their children will be grown, their homes paid for and alternate sources of income or insurance will cover the expenses that the life insurance was intended for. This must be addressed properly in a will, along with an explanation of the new methods for addressing the original concerns.
For example, an original will may have allocated the ownership of a home to a certain family member, but many people sell their homes at the time they retire and this must be reflected in the will. Additionally, some people had mortgage insurance policies that were directed to pay off the outstanding balances on their homes should they suffer an untimely death. This too is going to be reflected in a revised will.
When someone reaches the age of retirement, they will be in their 60s or 70s and this means that issues about health care must also be addressed. A person’s wishes for treatment, arrangements for long-term care insurance and any final arrangements will also need to be reviewed, updated or changed in their will as well.
All of this illustrates why people commit from one to three years before their targeted retirement date to making arrangements and ensuring their plans are in order. There are so many things to do before beginning retirement and ensuring that a will is accurate and up to date is really only one of them!