Baby Boomers are Making These 5 Common Estate Planning Mistakes

The baby boomer generation reaches from the early 1950s to mid-1964 and is sometimes known as the “greatest generation.” Approximately 76 million people born during this period are referred to as boomers.

Boomers are typically diligent, take vacations, are fiscally conservative, and avoid taking chances. Unless it’s an age 65 Medicare-eligible birthday party, they may be less enthusiastic about having a birthday.

The financial and estate planning issues faced by Boomers are distinct from those of other generations, as follows:

Assisting elder parents: Because many baby boomers still have one or both of their elderly parents, they are more likely compelled to help them financially to fulfill their remaining life requirements.

Assisting adult children: Many baby boomers often help their youthful children close the financial gap between their obligations and a declining income, especially when buying a first residence or paying off a higher education debt they have never had to deal with before.

Divorce issues: The divorce rate among boomers is nearly double that of their parent’s generation. This makes their financial and estate planning more complicated in general.

Retirement strategies: Boomers are more flexible than older generations when retiring at a specific age, such as 62 or 65. Baby Boomer company owners, for example, frequently enjoy their work and anticipate living longer, which may lead them to be more focused on how to redefine and scope the labor they do than were their parents.

Complex tax issues: Boomers are frequently subjected to more complicated federal and state tax regulations than their parents and grandparents were. This is especially true for boomers who have relocated to another state but continue to generate income in their prior home state.

Liquidity issues: As a result of their experience, baby boomers have more assets than previous generations. Boomer company exit plans might be complicated. Business owners may have a greater variety and illiquidity in their investments. It’s possible that converting their illiquid assets to retirement income resources will take more effort and time.

Insurance needs: Boomers have a longer life expectancy and more health insurance, and the potential for long-term care expenses. More insurance products are available to manage these risks, which may be confusing and challenging to understand and evaluate.

The ever-changing workplace: If boomers are still in the “rat race,” as employees or business owners, they work at various times than their parents. The constantly changing and volatile business environment might put a bricks-and-mortar company’s profits at risk. Customers and employers may not be as reliable.

Leisure issues: Boomers’ parents may have had more manageable lives with regular schedules of two, three, or four weeks of annual vacation. Their parents may have had more manageable lives with predictable annual leave routines of two, three, or four weeks. Life is a “barrel of activity,” and boomers frequently suffer from low quality and insufficient leisure time.

According to a nationally recognized estate and financial planning expert, today’s baby boomers are more prone to common financial and estate planning blunders.

Here are a few examples:

• Not taking financial or estate planning seriously enough or putting it off for too long.
• You are not taking all of your financial planning objectives into account.
• Not paying attention to rising inflation concerns. The failure to diversify and properly allocate retirement nest egg assets is a significant risk.

The baby boomers, who are between the ages of 49 and 72, will be in charge of planning for their golden years and financing them. This generation has started retirement and is continuing to do so. Many individuals born between 1946 and 1964 have discovered that they had made some of the most basic retirement errors as they entered this field.

Even if you’ve made a few financial blunders, there’s still time to avoid these five surprisingly prevalent planning mistakes that baby boomers are making in droves.

Estate Planning Mistakes in the Baby Boomers Generation

Mistake #1: While baby boomers are not the only ones who make this error, it is a prevalent misconception that only the ultra-wealthy need to have an estate plan. According to some sources, around half of Americans between the ages of 55 and 64 do not even have a will. If you don’t prepare for your death, your lack of preparation could have profound implications.

Mistake #2: Having a “checklist mentality”: Many individuals view estate planning as simply the process of preparing legal papers. When the paperwork is completed, the customer crosses off the item from their to-do list and goes on their way. However, your circumstances can (and almost certainly will) alter. And with time passing, the probability of this happening rises.

Mistake #3: Your estate planning papers are signed does not necessarily imply that you’ve completed your estate planning homework. Any assets that need to be rebranded must be done as soon as possible before you forget. If the title or designations on financial accounts and property do not correspond to your estate planning plan, there may be severe issues in the future. If you are considering writing your will or trust and naming yourself as the primary beneficiary, your property may be dispersed unexpectedly. This might happen since one strategy can be devised through a will or trust. However, the ultimate determination of who gets what at your death will rely on the ownership or designation of beneficiaries for those assets.

Mistake #4: When creating an estate plan, it’s crucial to consider all types of property, not simply high-value assets. Digital assets and family pets are two of the most frequently overlooked possessions. If your estate plan does not specifically address them, your loved ones may quarrel over valuable assets, abandon those they believe to be useless, or not even realize certain.

Mistake #5: No one has a crystal ball. However, with sound estate planning, you may be able to weather the storm created by some of life’s unexpected events or emergencies. If the time comes, planning for long-term care expenses that are continually increasing may help you save money and reduce worry by preparing for the future possibility of a nursing home.

Ready to address some of the mistakes you’ve made with your estate planning strategy? Use our contact page to get in touch so we can address any lingering issues you’ve been putting off. Or attend one of our seminars if you’d like to learn more about the estate planning process in general.

Will baby boomers have anything left to pass on to their children?