Estate planning is an integral part of life for all Americans, regardless of your age or the amount of financial assets you’ve accumulated thus far in your life. However, one of the most common misconceptions about estate planning is that once your estate planning documents have been drafted, you never need to revisit them. At McCulloch & Miller, we recommend all of our clients at least annually review their estate plan with an attorney to ensure that it continues to meet your needs, goals and current situation. Moreover, it is essential to take a look at your estate planning documents whenever you experience a major change in your life. It is for this reason that we’ve developed the Estate Planning Maintenance Plan.
What Is the Estate Planning Maintenance Plan?
The idea behind an estate plan is to create documents that will serve your interests regardless of what the future holds. However, over time, the circumstances of your life will change. The Estate Planning Maintenance Plan is a new program McCulloch & Miller, PLLC has rolled out to help current clients keep on top of their estate planning needs. The plan was designed for our existing clients in hopes of offering a cost-effective way for them to make sure their estate plan continues to serve them as well as it did when it was first created.
For the low annual cost of $500 (for individuals) or $750 (for couples), you will receive the following:
- An annual consultation for an estate plan review;
- Access to exclusive estate planning maintenance workshops;
- Unlimited changes to durable powers of attorney [link to Power of Attorney Documents page];
- Unlimited changes to medical powers of attorney; and
- Timely updates on all relevant changes to the law that may impact your estate plan.
On top of this, if a change in circumstances requires modifications to your estate planning documents or the creation of new documents, you will receive a 20 percent discount on all new estate plan documents. We also offer a 10 percent discount for those with referrals from friends or family members.
When Do You Need to Update Your Estate Plan?
As a general rule, we recommend that you have one of our estate planning lawyers review your current plan each year, or after any of the following life events:
- Bringing a child into the home (birth or adoption);
- Divorce or remarriage;
- Changes in your health;
- Changes in your financial situation;
- Changes in business ownership [link to Estate Planning for Business Owners page];
- Death of a beneficiary; or
- Changes to your distribution plan, for example, if you want to add charitable giving.
Aside from the obvious reason that your circumstances may require modifications to your estate plan, it is imperative to frequently review your existing plan to ensure that there have not been any subsequent changes to the law that will change the legal operation of any of your documents.
Learn More About the McCulloch & Miller Estate Planning Maintenance Plan
if you are interested in learning more about the Estate Planning Maintenance Plan offered by McCulloch & Miller, PLLC, give us a call at 713-955-7281 to schedule a consultation with one of our Houston estate planning lawyers. We can go over the Estate Planning Maintenance Plan with you and help you determine if it makes sense for you and your family.