Here's the sentence that ruins estates: beneficiary designations override your will. The ex-spouse still named on a 401(k), the child born after the forms were signed, the trust that exists on paper but on no account — we've seen all three this year.
The form beats the will
Retirement accounts, life insurance, annuities, and most bank and brokerage accounts pass by beneficiary form or transfer-on-death registration — not by your will or trust. An updated estate plan with stale beneficiary forms is a plan that won't work where most of the money actually is.
The five accounts to check
Pull current designations for: your 401(k) and IRAs, life insurance, HSAs, bank and brokerage TOD registrations, and any 529 or pension survivor elections. Confirm primary and contingent beneficiaries, check that names match legal names, and make sure trusts named as beneficiaries actually exist with correct titles and dates.
Twenty minutes, once a year
We audit designations for every client annually — after divorces, births, deaths, and remarriages, immediately. Add it to the same checklist as your smoke-detector batteries: fast, boring, and the highest-value twenty minutes in your financial year.
The takeaway
Can't remember what your 401(k) says? That's the answer — it's time for an audit. Bring us the list and we'll review every designation with you.
