Estate planning changes a little bit each year, and in 2020, it’s no different. People with estate plans need to consider new limits on taxes and other factors that could impact their estate once they pass away.
As you know, estate planning covers what you’d like to have happen to your assets when you pass away. It also gives you the opportunity to explain how you want your health care to be handled and how you want your estate to be managed if you can no longer do so yourself due to a serious illness or disability.
Your estate plan should take into consideration everything you own as well as your wishes. You will need to list everything of value that you own, identifying all your assets. You’ll want to set up a health care proxy and power of attorney. You may want to create a will, living will, or trust.
How Does Estate Planning Change over Time?
The good news is that not much changes from year to year, but if you haven’t reviewed your estate plan for several years or decades, you may want to do so now. As you get older, you may have more assets to add or need to start looking at ways to reduce the value of your estate as it approaches the estate-tax threshold.
If you are starting estate planning in 2020, the first $11.58 million of your estate will be exempted from federal estate taxes. That may change in the future, which is why you will want to continue to look back and make changes to your estate plan as you grow older.