Only 50 percent of Americans has an up-to-date estate plan on the books.

That means between you and your partner, only one of you has specified in writing who will receive their life’s worth of assets. If you think it doesn’t matter because you won’t be around to watch others sort it out, think again.

What’s an Estate?

National Estate Planning Awareness Week from Oct. 18-24 is the nudge many of us need to put these vital details on paper.

Start with taking inventory of your assets. Your estate isn’t just your home. An estate includes all of your assets: your car; checking and savings accounts; retirement investments; additional homes and/or properties; life insurance plans; and even that classic baseball card collection.

While the bulk of estate planning includes declaring who you’d like to receive your assets after your death or in the event you become incapacitated, it also spells out:

• The guardian you’ve selected for your minor children
• Provisions for family members with special needs
• Instructions for your care if you can’t make these decisions for yourself
• Arrangements for disability income insurance if you can’t work due to illness or injury; long-term care insurance in the event of extended illness or injury; and life insurance to provide for loved ones after your death
• The transfer of your business when you retire, are incapacitated or pass away

Having up-to-date wills, living wills and advanced directives also minimizes taxes, court costs and unnecessary legal fees for those you wish to benefit.

MetLife Can Help

During the Open Enrollment process this year, you have a one-time opportunity to enroll in the university's Optional Life Insurance plan or increase your coverage without having to provide a health statement of insurability for limited coverage increases.

Even better – the Optional Life Insurance plan gives you free access to digital estate planning resources. Similar no-cost tools are available if you have the Legal Services Plan. If you'd like to enroll in the Optional Life or Legal Services plans, you can do so during Open Enrollment, which takes place Oct. 18-29. Coverage begins Jan. 1, 2022.

Fidelity Investments and TIAA, U-M’s partners in administering its retirement savings plans, also offer free tools to help you begin the estate planning process.

Are Your Beneficiaries Up-to-Date?

Keeping beneficiary designations current is one of the easiest and most important ways to protect your loved ones financially. If you or a family member have experienced a major life event – like marriage, divorce, birth of a child or death of a loved one – check to make sure your beneficiaries are still current.

Keep in mind that for U-M benefits, you need to designate beneficiaries separately through TIAA and Fidelity Investments for your retirement savings plan accounts, and through MetLife for life insurance.