The 2026 Estate Plan Checkup: 10 Things to Review in 30 Minutes
January has a special kind of momentum. You’re getting organized, making plans, maybe recovering from a health scare in the family, welcoming a new baby, or realizing your parents need more support than they used to. All of those moments have one thing in common: they can make your estate plan either more important—or suddenly outdated.
The good news: you don’t need a full rewrite every year. A quick annual review can catch the issues that cause the biggest headaches later.
Here’s a simple 30-minute estate plan checkup you can do at the start of 2026.
First, grab these (2 minutes)
Your trust (if you have one) and any amendments
Your will
Your financial power of attorney (who can act for you with finances if you can’t)
Your advance health care directive (your medical decision-maker + instructions)
A list of your major assets (home, bank accounts, retirement, life insurance)
If you can’t find these quickly, that’s already a useful result: your first update might be your document storage system.
The 30-minute checklist (10 items)
1) Have you had a “life change” since your last review? (3 minutes)
Common triggers:
Marriage, divorce, or a serious new relationship
New baby or grandchild
A move (even within the Bay Area) or buying/selling property
A business change (new entity, partner, big growth)
A death in the family
Aging parents needing more help
A diagnosis or health event
If any of these happened, it’s worth a closer look—even if your plan is only a year or two old.
2) Are your decision-makers still the right people? (4 minutes)
Most plans name people for different jobs, like:
Trustee (manages trust assets)
Executor (handles the will/probate process if needed)
Agent under power of attorney (finances)
Health care agent (medical decisions)
Guardian for minor children
Ask:
Would I still choose them today?
Are they healthy, responsible, and available?
Do I have at least one backup named?
3) Are your beneficiaries still correct—and complete? (3 minutes)
Things that commonly go wrong:
Someone is missing (new child, new grandchild)
An ex is still listed somewhere
“Equal shares” doesn’t match reality anymore
You want to include a charity but never actually added it
Even small updates can prevent big family confusion.
4) Do your beneficiary designations match your plan? (4 minutes)
Some assets pass by beneficiary form, not by your will or trust, including:
Retirement accounts (401(k), IRA)
Life insurance
Many payable-on-death bank accounts
This is one of the most common “silent” problems: the trust says one thing, but the beneficiary form says another. A 5-minute review can prevent a major mismatch.
5) If you have a trust, is it actually funded? (4 minutes)
A trust only controls the assets that are properly connected to it. In plain English, check:
Is your home titled in the name of the trust (if that’s the plan)?
Are key bank/investment accounts titled correctly?
Have you listed the right assets on your trust schedule (if applicable)?
In California, an unfunded or partially funded trust is a common reason families end up in probate when they thought they were avoiding it.
6) Are the “what if” instructions still what you want? (3 minutes)
Look for sections about:
When and how children receive money
Education support
Substance abuse protections
Special planning for a beneficiary with disabilities
“If we both pass at the same time” scenarios
You don’t need to overthink this—just confirm it still reflects your values.
7) Have you updated your digital life plan? (2 minutes)
Most people have more value online than they realize:
Password manager
Photos and cloud storage
Crypto or online financial accounts
Two-factor authentication access
Business accounts (Stripe, Shopify, domain names)
At minimum, make sure someone you trust can find instructions for access without you emailing passwords around.
8) Do you know where the originals are—and can your people find them? (2 minutes)
Ask yourself:
Where are the signed originals stored?
Who knows how to access them?
If something happened tonight, would my spouse/partner be able to locate them in 10 minutes?
A simple shared folder, a safe, or a fireproof box—plus clear instructions—can be the difference between “smooth” and “chaos.”
9) Are your professional advisors aligned? (2 minutes)
If you have a CPA, financial advisor, or insurance agent, your plan works best when everyone is pulling in the same direction.
A quick check:
Does your financial advisor understand your trust plan?
Are any accounts intentionally outside the trust (and why)?
Did you open new accounts last year that might need updates?
10) Do you have a plan for an incapacity situation? (3 minutes)
Most families focus on death planning, but incapacity is often the bigger day-to-day issue.
Confirm:
Your power of attorney and health care directive are signed and current
Your chosen agents are people who can actually step in
Your agents know they’re named (and where documents are)
When a “quick checkup” should become a real update
If any of these are true, it’s time to talk:
You can’t find your documents
Your named decision-makers have changed (or should)
Your beneficiary forms don’t match your plan
You bought or refinanced a home
You have a new child, new marriage, or new business situation
Want a simple 2026 estate plan check-up call?
If you’d like, we can do a 30-minute check-up consultation to review what you have, identify gaps, and map out next steps—without making it overwhelming. Use this link to get on our calendar: Schedule a Consultation