Marking Sense Monday - Beneficiary Designations

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - June 24, 2014 - PRLog -- - Designate who will receive assets upon your death
- Avoid probate
- Review and update regularly

One of the easiest ways to make sure your assets go to the right people is to list them as beneficiaries. By law, the beneficiaries (individuals or institutions) you designate for an account will receive the assets in that account upon your death.

Retirement accounts, life insurance policies and annuities allow you to assign beneficiaries. It's important to name primary beneficiaries and contingent beneficiaries, who receive the assets if the primary beneficiaries predecease you.

Brokerage accounts do not include beneficiary designations, but you can complete a Transfer on Death (TOD) agreement to designate how your assets should be distributed. You must complete a separate TOD agreement for each single or joint account you have. A TOD agreement assigns beneficiaries, which can help you avoid the costs, delays and publicity of probate.

Probate is a court proceeding to ensure the deceased person's debts are paid and the assets are distributed to the appropriate people. In some states, probate can be a costly, time-consuming and public process.

Even if you have a will or trust, your beneficiary designations are an important part of your overall plan.

It's important to review your beneficiary designations regularly, particularly when your life circumstances change, such as a marriage, a divorce, the birth of a child or the death of a spouse. If you don't update your account beneficiaries, your assets could be inherited by someone you no longer intended.

Learn about titling your assets to align with your estate plan »

Edward Jones, its employees and financial advisors are not estate planners and cannot provide tax or legal advice. Please consult your attorney or qualified tax advisor regarding your situation.