How to Prepare Financial Information for a Trusted Contact

Updated: July 24, 2024

Created in Collaboration with Kiplinger.

While it may feel uncomfortable, sharing information with your adult children or other trusted contacts about your personal finances and estate planning can lead to many benefits. Communicating important financial details can:

• Make it easier for a trusted contact to step in and help manage your daily finances if necessary
• Help ensure that your wishes are taken into account when your assets are managed and distributed
• Clarify the plans you have in place to help avoid the probate process, which can incur costs and delay transfer of assets
• Empower you and your family to plan for the future as you intend
  
  

Below is a checklist of important documents and details to prepare and discuss during these conversations. Since financial information referenced in this checklist is considered sensitive information, we urge you to use caution when preparing and discussing this information and to only provide details to someone you consider a trusted contact.

Key Financial Data

 

• Information about accounts with banks or credit unions
• Contact information for financial professional, tax preparer, attorney, and insurance agent
• Copies of insurance policies
• Information about pensions, investment and retirement accounts, and annuities
• Copy of most recent income tax return
• Social Security number(s)
  
  

Vital Legal Documents

 

Be prepared to share copies of the following documents along with instructions on where to find the original versions.

• A health care directive, which spells out your medical treatment preferences, and a health care agent, who makes medical decisions for you if you can’t
• A power of attorney for finances
• Trusts or wills
• Deeds to real estate, including cemetery plots
• Vehicle titles
• Birth and marriage certificates
  
  

Ongoing Money Management

 

• List of household expenses and recurring bills, including account information
• Information about outstanding debts
• Safe deposit box information and where the key can be found
• Passwords for devices and digital accounts
  
  

Best practices for protecting financial information online³

• Don’t click on unfamiliar or suspicious links and attachments
• Create strong passwords, change them regularly and consider using password management programs to help protect and keep track of multiple passwords
• Keep your software up to date and utilize security features like antivirus and spyware detection
• Avoid accessing financial information on public Wi-Fi connections
  
  

Ask a financial professional to refer you to an attorney who can help you plan and complete the estate documents outlined in this checklist.

Download Checklist