Estate Planning Checklist: Coordinating Your Wealth, Tax and Legacy Plans
A useful estate planning checklist is about much more than signing a will. For high income earners, business owners and retirees, it sits at the intersection of investment accounts, retirement assets, real estate, business interests and income taxes. Reviewed separately, those pieces can leave gaps: an outdated beneficiary form, an unfunded trust, or a portfolio that creates an avoidable tax bill for heirs.
This guide walks through the items families in Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay and across Wisconsin may want to review, with a focus on how each step connects to wealth management and tax planning. If you would like a second set of eyes on how your accounts, taxes and documents fit together, you can request a complimentary, no-obligation wealth and tax review. Legal documents themselves should always be drafted and reviewed in coordination with an estate planning attorney.
Why an Estate Planning Checklist Should Include Wealth and Tax Planning
The documents are legal, but the outcomes are largely financial. The way assets are titled, the order in which accounts are spent in retirement, and the tax character of what heirs receive can all shape how much of a lifetime of saving actually reaches the people and causes you care about.
A coordinated approach brings together three perspectives:
An estate planning attorney, who drafts wills, trusts, powers of attorney and health care directives
A wealth advisor, who manages how investments are allocated, titled and drawn down over time
A tax professional, who considers income, gift and estate tax consequences across generations
Compound's wealth management and tax planning and preparation services are designed to work alongside your attorney so that the plan on paper reflects how your money is actually organized.
Step One: Take Inventory of What You Own and How It Is Titled
Before reviewing any documents, it can help to create a complete picture of your balance sheet. A simple inventory might include:
Taxable brokerage accounts, including any concentrated stock positions
Retirement accounts such as a 401(k), 403(b), IRA or Roth IRA
Real estate, including a primary residence, cabin or rental properties
Ownership interests in a private business or professional practice
Life insurance policies and annuities
Bank, education and digital accounts
For each item, note how it is titled (individually, jointly, in a trust or through an entity) and whether it passes by beneficiary designation, by title or through your will. This exercise often reveals surprises, such as a rental property held outside the trust meant to receive it. If you are building your first full picture, a sample personal financial plan template and checklist may be a helpful starting point.
Step Two: Review Core Documents With Your Attorney
Most estate plans rest on a handful of core documents. An estate planning attorney can advise on which are appropriate for your situation, but a typical review covers:
A will that names guardians for minor children and an executor
A revocable trust, if one is used to manage assets during life and avoid probate
Durable financial power of attorney
Health care power of attorney and advance directives
Any irrevocable trusts created for gifting, insurance or charitable goals
If your plan includes a trust, the revocable living trust guide explains how funding works and why a trust only controls the assets actually placed in it. The practical question: have your accounts been retitled or designated to match what the documents say?
Step Three: Align Beneficiary Designations With the Plan
Beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance and transfer-on-death accounts generally override instructions in a will. That makes them one of the most important, and most frequently overlooked, items on any checklist.
Consider reviewing whether:
Primary and contingent beneficiaries are named on every account
Designations reflect marriages, divorces, births and deaths since they were last updated
A trust is named where it may make sense to manage assets for young or vulnerable heirs
Charitable beneficiaries are considered for pre-tax retirement accounts, which can be tax-efficient gifts
The tax angle matters here. Pre-tax retirement money is typically taxable income to most non-spouse beneficiaries, often on a compressed timeline under current IRS rules. Leaving those dollars to a charity while directing taxable brokerage assets (which may receive a step-up in basis) to family can, in some cases, improve after-tax outcomes for everyone involved.
Step Four: Coordinate Investments and Taxes Across Generations
This is where an estate plan becomes a living part of your financial strategy. A few questions to discuss with your advisors:
Which assets are likely to be spent during retirement, and which are likely to be inherited?
Could asset location across taxable, tax-deferred and Roth accounts improve what heirs ultimately receive?
Would partial Roth conversions in lower income years reduce the tax burden passed to children in higher brackets?
Are there highly appreciated holdings that may be better held until death, or donated, rather than sold?
Do lifetime gifts, including gifts to education accounts or a donor-advised fund, fit your goals and cash flow?
For larger estates, federal transfer taxes may also come into play, and exemption amounts set by law can change. The overview of Wisconsin gift and estate tax basics covers the key concepts.
Step Five: Plan for Business Owners and Special Situations
Owners of closely held companies in Appleton, Waukesha and Eau Claire often have most of their net worth tied to a single business. For them, an estate plan may need to address buy-sell agreements, valuation, voting versus non-voting interests, and who will run the company if something unexpected happens. A structured approach to family business succession planning can help connect ownership transfer with both estate and income tax considerations.
Second marriages, a family member with special needs, property in more than one state and significant charitable intent may also call for a deeper conversation with your attorney and financial team.
Step Six: Set a Review Schedule and Share the Plan
Many families revisit their documents and beneficiary forms every few years and after major life events such as a marriage, divorce, birth, move, business sale or the death of a family member. Tax laws also change, which can shift whether a strategy still makes sense.
A short letter of instruction explaining where documents are stored and how to reach your advisors can spare loved ones considerable stress.
Put Your Estate Planning Checklist to Work With a Coordinated Team
The real value often comes from seeing how each decision affects your investments, taxes and legacy at the same time. Compound works with individuals and families throughout Wisconsin and surrounding areas, coordinating with your estate planning attorney so that documents, accounts and tax strategy point in the same direction. To see how your current plan lines up, schedule a complimentary wealth and tax review.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should be on an estate planning checklist?
A thorough estate planning checklist typically includes an inventory of assets and how they are titled, a review of your will, trusts and powers of attorney, updated beneficiary designations, a look at how investments and taxes affect heirs, and a schedule for future reviews. Your estate planning attorney can advise on documents, while a wealth and tax team can help align accounts and tax strategy.
How often should I review my estate plan?
Many families review their estate plan every few years and after major life events, such as marriage, divorce, the birth of a child or grandchild, a move to another state, a business sale or a large inheritance. Changes in tax law may also prompt a review. Beneficiary designations are worth checking more often because they can override instructions in your will.
Do beneficiary designations override my will?
In most cases, yes. Retirement accounts, life insurance policies and transfer-on-death accounts generally pass directly to the named beneficiaries regardless of what your will says. That is why outdated beneficiary forms are one of the most common gaps in an estate plan. Reviewing them with your attorney and financial advisor can help keep them consistent with your overall wishes.
Why involve a financial advisor and tax professional in estate planning?
Estate documents decide who receives assets, but investment and tax decisions shape how much they receive and when. A financial advisor can help with titling, asset location and drawdown strategy, while a tax professional can model income and transfer tax effects. Working together with your estate planning attorney may help reduce gaps between the plan on paper and how your accounts are actually structured.
Compound is a registered investment adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. This article is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as personalized investment, tax, or legal advice. Tax laws are complex and subject to change. Strategies discussed may not be suitable for everyone, and there is no guarantee that any strategy will achieve its objectives or reduce taxes. Calculator results are hypothetical, are not guarantees of future results, and do not reflect any actual investment. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Please consult your tax, legal, and financial professionals before acting on any information in this article. For more information, see Compound's Form ADV, available at adviserinfo.sec.gov.
About Compound Wealth
Compound Wealth works with business owners, entrepreneurs, professionals, and families with increasingly complex financial lives. The firm brings together tax planning, wealth management, client accounting services, and business transition advisory to provide a coordinated planning experience. By evaluating multiple aspects of a client's financial picture together, planning discussions may become more structured and aligned with long-term goals.
