Preview Mode Links will not work in preview mode

Retirement Quick Tips with Ashley


Sep 25, 2019

This week I’m sharing with you 5 beneficiary mistakes to avoid. If you’re like most people, you probably set up your beneficiaries on your IRA and 401k accounts 2 decades ago, and you haven’t revisited them since. So this week, I’m sharing with you the mistakes that I see people make most often and how you can avoid those same mistakes. 

Today, I’m talking about beneficiary mistake #2 - Failing to review your beneficiaries after major life changes I’ve heard horror stories of the ex-spouse who received all the assets, while the current spouse was left with nothing, all because beneficiaries weren’t reviewed and updated after the divorce and remarriage. 

There are a lot of trigger events that should prompt reviews of your beneficiaries. I actually talked about the 7 Trigger Events That Should Prompt An Estate Plan Review in episode 332 of the podcast, so check out that episode on iTunes or Spotify if you missed it, but today, I just want to cover the most important ones that should prompt a review of your benes. 

  1. Death - this is the biggest one. Be sure to update your beneficiary forms right away if one of your beenficiaries dies, so there’s no confusion about your intentions. 
  2. Divorce - As I stated earlier, this can be a big surprise for your intended heirs or future spouse. According to Investopedia unless a court order states otherwise, the former spouse is likely be entitled to receive the assets if he or she is the named beneficiary on record at the time of the IRA owner's death.” Yikes. 
  3. Remarriage - If you’ve been divorced and subsequently re-marry, you’ll want to update your beenficiary forms if you want to ensure your new spouse receives your intended share of those assets. 
  4. Birth - When you have children or grandchildren or at the birth of anyone else you want to include as a beneficiary, it’s important to update your beneficiary forms at that time as well. 

That’s it for today. Before you go, please take a minute to leave an honest review for the One Minute Retirement Tip in Amazon or iTunes. Thanks for listening! My name is Ashley Micciche and this is the One Minute Retirement Tip. 

---------

>>> Subscribe on iTunes: https://apple.co/2DI2LSP

>>> Subscribe on Amazon Alexa: https://amzn.to/2xRKrCs

>>> Check out our blog: https://truenorthretirementadvisors.com/blog/

----------

Tags: retirement, investing, money, finance, financial planning, retirement planning, saving money, personal finance, wealth management, fee only financial advisor, financial planner, financial podcast, retirement podcast, financial independence podcast, beneficiary designation vs will, ira beneficiary designation rules, bank account beneficiary vs will, IRA beneficiary, what is an IRA, inherited annuity, life insurance beneficiary, beneficiaries, primary beneficiary, contingent beneficiary, beneficiary designation, beneficiary form, secondary beneficiary, beneficiary insurance definition, 401k beneficiary, 401k beneficiary rules surviving spouse, 401k beneficiary designation rules, 401k contingent beneficiary, spousal 401k