Estate Planning Resolutions to Protect Your Financial Legacy in 2022...and Beyond!

Resolutions can be great ways to start your new year off on the right foot. Sadly, though, the majority of New Year’s resolutions are abandoned—often by February!

Why? Some may have extenuating circumstances, but usually it’s the types of resolutions themselves that doom the endeavor from the start. Idealistic, over-ambitious, or imprecise resolutions set you up to fail because you don't know what success looks like.

A better approach is to identify goals that have clear objectives. To borrow a phrase from the business world, you should use leading indicators, not lagging indicators.

Imagine a company that wants to increase sales. Instead of framing the goal as the end result (a lagging indicator), the company could focus on steps that lead to the desired outcome (a leading indicator). In other words, a better goal might be to “make 10 sales calls each day.”

We can apply this system to estate planning goals also. Resolving to improve your estate plan is fantastic, and we are here to help you decide on the right resolutions and stick to them. I put together a list of 10 estate planning resolutions that you can adopt for 2022.

Key Tax Planning Topics and Updates for 2022

There was so much back and forth and will-they-won’t-they in 2021 about various tax proposals that it can be hard to know what the lay of the land is as we enter 2022. What tax reforms passed? Which didn’t? Did they pass in their original forms? How am I going to be impacted?

On top of that, concern about these more "big ticket" tax reform proposals can overshadow the smaller (but equally important) changes, tweaks, and updates to tax statutes that happen year after year (e.g. the gift tax exemption).

It’s just as important to stay apprised of these potential big changes as it is to adapt to the less flashy ones like new regulatory guidance, adjusted figures, and expired statutes. I encourage you to read this short piece about all of these changes to get a sense for where we stand on tax reform and how your estate plan will be affected in the coming year.

Don't Forget: Free Live Webinar on Relocation & Estate Plans

As a reminder, I am starting a brand-new live webinar for new Florida residents to discuss the impacts that relocation has on estate plans.

The webinar is monthly and is completely free. The next one will be on February 8 at 10:00 am.

If you have recently relocated, are thinking about relocating, or know someone who is, I encourage you to sign up for the webinar. You can learn more about the topics we’ll cover, see a full list of dates, and register at www.Welcome2FL.com.

As always, I personally appreciate that you have taken the time to read this newsletter. I also commend you for caring about your financial legacy. Like many aspects of life, if you don’t plan for where you’re going, you might end up in a place that you don’t want to be.

I am always here to help you make the most beneficial and effective decisions about your financial legacy. Don’t hesitate to reach out by phone or email to schedule a complimentary New Year Financial Legacy Review so you can plan ahead for a successful 2022.

Sincerely,