Estate planning advice is usually written for a typical family. Yours may include a child who depends on you, grandchildren, a child you've lost, or children from more than one marriage. Your Checkup starts with the people you tell us about.
What your Checkup looks at
Your children and grandchildren
Based on their ages and needs, we list the options to discuss with an attorney: guardians for a minor child, trusts that release money over time, and how a late child's share would pass to their children.
A child who depends on you
If a child has a disability, we explain the planning that protects their benefits, such as a supplemental needs trust, and the Social Security benefits they may qualify for.
If you couldn't manage on your own
We explain the documents that let someone you choose step in during an illness, including what applies if you own property in more than one state.
Your life insurance
We check when your policies end, who they name, and whether they'd still pay when your family might need them.
What you hope to leave
We compare your inheritance goal with your forecast, and show how much you could spend and still meet it.
A briefing for your advisers
We prepare a summary your estate attorney or tax professional can use, so your first meeting starts from your facts.
What you’d see · Sample
Planning for Eli
Denise, 66, and Paul, 69. Denise's son Eli, 34, has Down syndrome; Paul has two grown children.
Eli receives SSI and Medicaid, which have strict limits on what he can own. Money left to him directly, from your will, a life insurance policy or a retirement account, could end those benefits. A supplemental needs trust can hold that money for him instead, without affecting them.
Once you start Social Security, Eli may qualify for a benefit on your record as an adult disabled since childhood. It's often larger than SSI, and after two years it can bring Medicare as well.
Your wills currently leave everything to each other. If you died first and Paul later changed his will, your share could pass to his children rather than to Eli. This is a common issue in blended families, and an attorney can show you several ways to protect each side.
From a sample Checkup for a fictional household. Your Checkup is written from your own answers.
How it ties into the rest of your plan
- Your survivor forecast shows what happens to the family's money if either of you dies first.
- Questions about your deed and beneficiaries appear alongside your estate options, because they can override a will.
Background reading
- Estate tax: who actually owes itThe federal limit is $15,000,000 per person in 2026, so few families owe it. State estate and inheritance taxes start much lower. Here's how they work.
- Planning for a child with a disabilityHow to leave money to a child who relies on SSI or Medicaid without putting those benefits at risk: supplemental needs trusts, ABLE accounts and more.