You may have first created your estate plan when you got married or started a well-paid professional job. Now that you have children or a child on the way, you will need to reconsider your estate plan and possibly make some changes to it.
If you don’t already have an estate plan, having kids is a good reason to make one. Protecting your children will become one of your main estate planning goals, and there are several ways that you can help leave a meaningful legacy for your kids.
Name the right guardian
Choosing a responsible and trustworthy guardian for your children is important. If anything were to happen to you and the other parent of your children, the guardian you name will help protect them and support them. Rather than assuming someone will step up to the role, taking the time to choose the right candidates now will protect your children.
Think about their inheritance
If you die while your children are still young, they may require years of support from a guardian before they are independent. You need to consider how you will help support them during that time and how to structure their inheritance so that it actually supports them and doesn’t end up wasted by their guardian.
Review your life insurance policy
You may have bought life insurance when you started your job because your employer provides coverage. You may want to update how much life insurance do you carry so that there are more funds available for your children when you die. On the other hand, you may want to update the beneficiary of your life insurance so that the children benefit from the policy you carry.
Creating an estate plan or updating it carefully will help you provide better protection for your children if anything ever happens to you.
