Estate Planning That Reflects What Matters Most
More Than Documents
Estate planning is often described as a set of documents—a will, a trust, maybe a power of attorney tucked into a folder somewhere. But in practice, it’s much more than that. Estate planning is about clarity, continuity, and care. It’s about making sure the people you love are supported, not burdened, at moments when life is already heavy.
In a recent Kitces.com webinar, estate planning attorney David Haughton highlighted something we see often in our work with clients: even well-intentioned estate plans can fall short when the details outside the documents aren’t aligned. A trust may be beautifully drafted, but if accounts aren’t titled correctly, beneficiary designations are outdated, or key authorizations are missing, the plan may not function the way it was meant to.
Where Plans Quietly Break Down
This is where estate planning becomes less about paperwork and more about intention. How assets are titled determines whether your wishes are carried out smoothly or whether your family faces unnecessary complexity. Beneficiary designations quietly override many estate documents, yet they’re often left unchanged for years as families evolve. Powers of attorney, meant to protect you during incapacity, are frequently too narrow or outdated to be honored when they’re actually needed. And increasingly, digital assets—online accounts, financial apps, cloud storage—are part of our lives and legacies, yet rarely addressed clearly.
These gaps don’t come from neglect or lack of care. They come from the understandable assumption that once documents are signed, the work is done.
Asset Location and Beneficiary Tax Impact
Good estate planning also recognizes that who inherits an asset can matter just as much as what they inherit. Beneficiaries may be in very different tax brackets, live in different states, or face different marginal income and capital gains rates. Assets that receive a step-up in basis—such as taxable brokerage accounts and real estate—are often most efficient to leave to heirs in higher tax brackets, while assets that do not receive a step-up, like traditional IRAs and other pre-tax retirement accounts, may be better directed to beneficiaries in lower tax brackets or to charitable strategies where income taxes can be avoided altogether.
State income taxes add another layer of complexity. Leaving income-heavy assets to beneficiaries in high-tax states can significantly erode after-tax value, while beneficiaries in low- or no-tax states may be better positioned to absorb those assets. Thoughtful coordination between asset type, beneficiary tax profile, and state residency can materially improve outcomes—often without changing who inherits, but how they inherit."
Powers of Attorney: Making Sure the Plan Actually Works
Powers of attorney are a critical part of any estate plan, yet they are also one of the most common points of failure. Financial institutions and custodians often reject powers of attorney that are outdated, too narrowly drafted, or not consistent with their internal requirements. It’s not enough for a POA to exist—it must be usable in the real world, which is why confirming custodian acceptance is so important.
In some cases, a general durable power of attorney is preferable to a springing power of attorney. Springing POAs only become effective after a formal determination of incapacity by a doctor, which can delay action at exactly the moment help is needed and create unnecessary administrative hurdles. A durable POA that is effective immediately allows a trusted agent to step in seamlessly, reducing friction, stress, and the risk of being locked out of accounts when time and clarity matter most."
Alignment Is What Makes a Plan Work
What emerges from all of this is a simple truth: an estate plan isn’t just a collection of legal documents. It’s a system. And like any system, it only works when every piece is aligned. When titling, beneficiaries, powers of attorney, healthcare directives, and digital access all point toward the same outcome, families experience clarity instead of confusion—and dignity instead of disruption.
This kind of coordination is where thoughtful planning makes a real difference.
Aligning Money With Meaning
At Birch Street, we view estate planning through this broader lens. Aligning money with meaning means looking beyond whether documents exist and asking whether they truly reflect your values and intentions today. It means revisiting decisions as life changes, and ensuring your financial life supports the people and causes that matter most to you—not just on paper, but in practice.
Estate planning isn’t about checking a box. It’s about creating peace of mind—for you now, and for those you love later.
