This is the next in our financial education series from Streamline Wealth. In this issue, I want to talk about what comes after the estate planning binder. The messy, unglamorous, deeply practical work of making sure your loved ones can actually find what they need.
When Sarah and I sat down to update our estate plan a few years ago, I walked away feeling like we'd checked every box. Will, trust, powers of attorney, beneficiaries reviewed, guardians named for our kids. Everything done. Right?
Then, in having conversations with several clients, I realized that our household ran the same as most. Compartmentalized. I took care of the investments, bills, and banking. Sarah took care of doctor's appointments, the kid's schooling, and keeping our household running. Sure, there's a lot of overlap, but if something happened to one of us, we'd each be winging it in a lot of areas of our lives.
That's when I realized, completing the legal documents is only step one. The operating manual of your actual life is step two. And almost nobody finishes step two.
Your will tells your loved ones who gets what. It does not tell them how the autopayment for the mortgage works, where the safe deposit box key is hidden, or which of the 15 streaming services you're actually still paying for.
I've broken it into the categories I think matter most, with a checklist at the end you can use.
1. Daily Financial Life: The Stuff That Pays the Bills
If you stopped showing up tomorrow, would anyone else in your house know how to keep the lights on? I mean that literally.
Think about how many of your bills run on autopay through a single checking account or one credit card. If that account gets frozen during probate, or no one knows the login, what's going to happen? Insurance lapses. Utilities shut off. Subscriptions you forgot about keep charging an account for months on end.
- Write down which accounts pay which bills, and on what schedule.
- List anything on auto-order or auto-renewal.
- Save names and contact info for every professional you use. Plumber, electrician, lawn service, house cleaner, pest control, HVAC company, handyman, etc.
- Appliance maintenance schedules. When the furnace filter gets changed, who cleans the gutters, or when the septic was last pumped.
- Call your utility and bill companies and add your spouse as an authorized user. Free. Fifteen minutes per call. And maybe the difference between your spouse being able to fix a problem, or being told "we can't talk to you about that account."
2. The Digital Side: Passwords, Photos, and the "Delete Me" Folder
The Wall Street Journal ran a great piece last year on what they called "digital death cleaning." The basic idea was that your loved ones don't just inherit your house and your accounts. They inherit your inbox, your photo library, your social media, your subscriptions. 30+ years of random files in random folders. That can be a gift, or it can be a nightmare.
- Use a password manager. I can't stress this enough. 1Password, Dashlane, Apple Passwords. Pick one. Then start moving every password into it. It's a game changer. If you remember nothing else from this newsletter, do this one thing. You won't regret it.
- Set legacy contacts on the big platforms. Password Managers, Apple, Google, and Facebook all let you designate someone to access your account after death.
- Label what's worth keeping and what's not. One approach I really liked from that WSJ piece, split your digital files into three buckets. "Relevant" (important for the family), "Memorabilia" (worth keeping for the kids and grandkids), and "Delete Upon Death" (the journal entries, or the documents you'd rather no one read).
- Make a list of every recurring subscription. Amazon Prime, Netflix, Dropbox. Every app and subscription. You'd be shocked how many of these keep charging an account for years after someone passes.
3. Care Plans: Kids, Pets, and Your Own Health
If you have minor children, your will names a guardian. But what the will won't do is tell the guardian how you want your kids to be raised.
A short letter to the guardian can include things like:
- The pediatrician, dentist, allergist, therapist. Names and where to find the records.
- Medications, allergies, learning differences, or diagnoses.
- The values you want passed on.
- The friends and extended family you'd want them to stay close to.
The same idea applies to pets. Your vet's name, food brand, medications, etc.
And for yourself, keep a list of your own doctors, diagnoses, and medications. It goes a long way when someone else has to step in during a medical event, not just at death. HIPAA release forms on file with your providers are also helpful. Without them, even your spouse can hit walls trying to get information.
4. Titling and Beneficiaries: The 20-Minute Review That Saves Months
Most of the messiest estate situations I've seen weren't caused by missing documents, they were caused by accounts that never got retitled or beneficiaries that never got updated. An ex-spouse listed on an old 401k or insurance policy. A bank account in one name with no payable-on-death designation.
- Beneficiaries listed on every retirement account: IRA, HSA, life insurance, annuities. Both primary AND contingent.
- Bank accounts: Is it jointly owned or do you have POD (payable on death) designation added?
- Investment accounts: Is it jointly owned, in a trust, or has TOD (transfer on death) been added?
- Real estate: titled into the trust, or held jointly
- Vehicles: Can be owned jointly or have TOD added.
We recommend reviewing your beneficiaries every couple of years, especially after a marriage, divorce, birth, or death in the family.
5. The Personal Touches: Wishes That Documents Don't Hold
- Personal property memorandum. Most states honor a simple document listing who gets your specific belongings. A Word document is fine. It saves your family from having to guess (or argue) over family heirlooms.
- Final wishes. Do you want to be buried or cremated? Have specific music played at your service? For some this doesn't matter, for others these are very important questions that need to be discussed. These choices, written down, can be an enormous gift to your family.
- A "Memorial Wishes Letter." If you've already pre-paid funeral arrangements, picked a plot, or have specific requests, your family needs to know they exist and where to find the paperwork.
6. The Step Most People Miss: Notice to Creditors
One last thing. After someone passes, the estate's executor is generally required to publish a "notice to creditors" in a local newspaper or legal publication. It tells anyone the deceased may have owed money to that they have a limited window, often three to six months, to file a claim. After that window closes, those creditors are generally barred from collecting.
Why does this matter to you now? Because a well-organized estate moves through that window quickly and cleanly. A disorganized one drags on for years, with creditors popping up long after the family has tried to move on. Everything in this newsletter helps make that process faster. Your executor will need a working list of your debts, your accounts, and your obligations.
A good probate attorney will handle the actual notice. But you can help make their job much easier.
Bottom Line
Almost nobody has done all of this. Even I haven't finished everything. Yet. But the more of these items you have completed, the easier time your family will have if something happens to you.
Below is a checklist you can use as you put your document together. This isn't all encompassing. Feel free to add your own items. Or take away ones that don't apply. And don't feel like you have to sit down and complete this all today. Pick a few items per week to check off the list. By the end of the summer you could be completely done!
The Beyond the Documents Checklist
A printable, category-by-category checklist covering everything in this article — daily finances, your digital life, household operations, childcare, pets, health care, titling and beneficiaries, document storage, personal property, final wishes, and what your executor will need.
Download the ChecklistPDF · free · no sign-up required
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Please note that you should not consider the contents of this newsletter to be investment, tax, or legal advice, and that this update is for informational and educational purposes only. Please contact us before you make any planning decisions, or if you wish to discuss your overall financial plan, your estate planning needs, or anything else related to our client-advisor partnership.
Advisory services offered through NewEdge Advisors, LLC doing business as Streamline Wealth, as a registered investment adviser. Securities offered through NewEdge Securities, LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC. NewEdge Advisors, LLC and NewEdge Securities, LLC are wholly owned subsidiaries of NewEdge Capital Group, LLC.
This document was written by our advisors and formatted with the assistance of AI.
Every plan is personal.
Business owners, real estate investors, and families with more complex assets have considerations that go beyond any checklist. If you'd like to walk through your own situation, we're happy to help — at your next review, or whenever you're ready.
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