Page 12 - Accumulating, Preserving, and Passing Wealth | Stifel

What Should You Do to Get Started?

The estate planning process can be daunting, but there are a few easy steps you can take to prepare yourself to move
forward.

First, take some time to think through your personal and financial objectives. This will help you develop a framework for
where you want to go and will help the other members of your professional team determine what tools will be best suited to
your particular situation.

Gather information about your assets, including their value, how they are titled, and where they are located. Your tax
professional and your Stifel Financial Advisor can be helpful in pulling this information together. Your Stifel Financial Advisor
can provide you with a Wealth Planning Questionnaire to help you think through the information you will want to collect and
to provide a place to compile the information for later use.

You may also want to ask your Stifel Financial Advisor about the Stifel Wealth Strategist Report , available exclusively through
®
Stifel. The Stifel Wealth Strategist Report is an individualized, comprehensive financial plan designed to help you analyze
®
your current financial situation and show you strategies for pursuing your financial goals. The Stifel Wealth Strategist Report
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organizes your financial information in six analyses: net worth, risk management, asset allocation strategies, retirement
funding, education funding, and estate planning and preservation.

The next step is to engage your estate planning team. Your estate planning attorney will help you determine what tools you
need and can then prepare the necessary documents.

Once your documents are in place, you may need to re-title assets if you incorporated a living trust into your plan. Your Stifel
Financial Advisor can assist you with this for the assets within your Stifel account(s). In addition, to assist you in simplifying
your affairs, your Stifel Financial Advisor can help you transfer other securities into your trust account at Stifel, providing you
with one consolidated investment statement along with the numerous other services available to you as a Stifel client.

When Should You Review Your Estate Plan?

Generally speaking, most estate planning professionals will recommend that you have your plan reviewed every three to five
years or upon a significant life event. Your family situation, as well as tax and other laws, can change significantly through
the years, so it is important to periodically review your plan to ensure it still meets your needs.
Any of the following may indicate that you should have your estate plan reviewed:
• Family changes, such as a birth, death, marriage, or divorce;
• Relocation to another state;
• Material changes in net worth, as well as the addition or deletion of life insurance;
• Significant business ownership changes;
• Preference changes as to who will receive your assets, including when and how;
• New special needs among your beneficiaries;
• A desire to make charitable contributions during your life or at your death or a desire to change the charitable
contributions currently in your plan;
• A desire to make lifetime gifts to family members or friends or to change the gifting strategy currently employed;
• Preference changes as to who should represent you, including your selection for personal representative or
executor, trustee, or guardian for your children;
• Major tax law changes; or
• A number of years have passed since your plan was last reviewed.

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