Getting married is a good time to create an estate plan or review the one you already have. Newlyweds should consider how they want property distributed, who should make financial and medical decisions if either spouse becomes incapacitated, and whether beneficiary designations and account ownership still reflect their wishes.
Use this estate planning checklist to identify the documents and decisions that may need attention after marriage.
What Should Newlyweds Include in an Estate Planning Checklist?
1. Create or Update Your Will
A will allows you to state who should receive property that passes through your estate and name an executor to handle estate administration. If either spouse already has a will, review it after marriage rather than assuming it still accomplishes what you want.
If you have minor children, a will can also nominate a guardian to care for them if both parents die.
2. Consider Whether You Need a Trust
A revocable living trust can provide more control over how assets are managed during your lifetime and distributed after your death. Assets properly transferred to the trust generally avoid probate.
A trust may be particularly useful if you own real estate, have significant assets, have children from a prior relationship, or want to place conditions on when beneficiaries receive property.
3. Review Your Beneficiary Designations
Some assets pass directly to a named beneficiary regardless of what your will says. Review the beneficiaries listed on accounts and policies such as:
- Life insurance policies
- Retirement accounts, including 401(k)s and IRAs
- Payable-on-death or transfer-on-death accounts
- Certain investment and financial accounts
Marriage does not automatically make every beneficiary designation match your current wishes. Older designations should be reviewed and updated where appropriate.
4. Decide Who Can Make Financial Decisions for You
A durable power of attorney allows you to authorize someone to handle financial and legal matters if you cannot manage them yourself. You may want your spouse to serve in this role, but that authority is not automatic in every situation.
The document can address matters such as banking, property transactions, taxes, and other financial responsibilities.
5. Create or Update Your Advance Health Care Directive
An advance health care directive lets you name someone to make medical decisions if you cannot communicate your wishes. It can also provide instructions about the types of health care you would or would not want.
For many newlyweds, this means formally giving a spouse the authority they already expect that person to have.
6. Review How Your Property Is Titled
How you own property can affect what happens to it after one spouse dies. California is a community property state, but the characterization and title of a particular asset still matter.
Review the title to your home and other significant property with an attorney before making changes. Different forms of ownership can have estate planning, probate, and tax consequences.
7. Identify Separate and Community Property
Marriage can change the financial relationship between two people, but it does not necessarily turn everything either spouse owns into community property.
Property owned before marriage, as well as certain gifts and inheritances, may remain separate property. Keeping clear records can help establish how assets should be treated later.
8. Address Children and Blended Family Considerations
If either spouse has children from a previous relationship, estate planning deserves particular attention. Simply leaving everything to a surviving spouse may not guarantee that your children ultimately receive the inheritance you intend for them.
Trusts and other planning strategies can help balance the needs of a surviving spouse with your goals for children or other beneficiaries.
9. Make a List of Your Assets and Important Information
Create an inventory of major assets, accounts, insurance policies, debts, and important documents. Make sure your spouse knows where key information is kept and how it can be accessed when necessary.
You should also review this inventory periodically as you buy property, open accounts, or make other financial changes.
10. Plan to Review Your Estate Plan Again
Marriage is only one life event that may call for an estate plan review. Revisit your documents after major changes such as the birth or adoption of a child, buying a home, receiving an inheritance, or experiencing a significant change in your finances.
Start Your Marriage With an Estate Plan That Fits Your Life
Estate planning gives newly married couples an opportunity to make deliberate decisions about their property, finances, and future care. Taking care of these documents early can also prevent outdated beneficiary choices or unclear instructions from creating problems later.
At OC Wills & Trust Attorneys, we help California couples create and update estate plans based on their assets, families, and long-term goals. Contact us to discuss which estate planning documents make sense for you and your spouse.
