What does a “good” estate plan look like from the advisor’s side

Inspired by the confidence that convinces us complex things should be simple

Watch a few renovation videos and suddenly you understand load-bearing walls, moisture barriers, electrical code. Five videos in, you’re ready to demo the whole kitchen.

Estate planning can look just as deceptively simple. A will, a trust, a few roles, some signatures. Clients often describe their plan as “straightforward,” the same way someone staring at bathroom tile insists it’s just “measure, cut, and stick.”

Advisors know better. The real markers of a good estate plan aren’t obvious in the finished product. They live underneath—in how it’s built, what it actually says, and whether it is maintained. Things you can only see if you know where to look.

The foundation matters more than the finishes

Clients sometimes assume that having “documents” means having a plan. But advisors understand that documents are like materials stacked in a garage—useful, but not proof of a stable structure. A good plan has the fundamentals in place:

• Durable financial and medical powers of attorney
• A will or trust that matches the client’s goals
• Beneficiary designations and account titles that aren’t contradicting anything else
• Backup roles chosen with actual intention, not birth order

When any of these are missing, a good advisor knows. The same way a good contractor knows when the flooring isn’t level.

Clarity beats complexity every time

An exceptional estate plan works like clear instructions. It answers big questions without hiding the logic.

• Who has authority, and under what conditions?
• What actually counts as incapacity?
• How should mixed or blended families be handled?
• What happens if the first choice can’t serve?

Choosing the right people for your estat plan (and not just the nearest people)

Families often select roles the way a new homeowner selects tools: whatever is closest. Advisors can spot instantly when someone has been appointed executor, trustee, or agent because they “seemed like the obvious choice,” not because they’re the right one.

A good plan assigns roles based on reality. Will this person communicate? Make decisions? Ask for help? Work with professionals? Keep the peace? Finish what they start? The right roles prevent future crises. The wrong ones create it.

Alignment is the difference between “nice idea” and “working plan”

This is where advisors really feel the weight of the work. Documents say one thing, account designations say another, a trust exists but holds nothing, and a tax strategy assumes liquidity the estate can’t provide. It’s the planning equivalent of renovating a bathroom and discovering the water shutoff is in a closet no one can access. When the pieces actually line up, advisors can build confidently. When they don’t, they're stuck playing structural mediator before anything else can move forward.

A good estate plan supports the broader financial plan rather than contradicting it. Advisors look for alignment across:

• Retirement strategies
• Tax considerations
• Real-estate transfers
• Charitable intentions
• Business interests
• Life-insurance placement

Interest rates and estate planning more broadly

Many estate planning strategies rely on interest rates to determine how assets are valued when they are gifted or loaned to individuals or trusts. Shifts in rates don’t uniformly improve or impair planning. Instead, they change which tools are most effective, requiring strategies to be reassessed rather than reused by habit.

Clients who understand their plan—and the plan that actually works

A good estate plan is one the client understands. They don’t need to quote article numbers. They should be able to explain the logic: who does what, why they chose those people, and what would happen if something changed. When clients grasp the structure, they’re far less likely to unintentionally contradict it elsewhere—by opening a new account, changing a beneficiary, or making a tax decision that clashes with their estate goals.

But even the clearest plan collapses if the final implementation never happens. Titling and funding are the unglamorous steps clients often assume someone else handled and advisors find themselves re-explaining more than anything else. A trust without assets moved into it is a beautiful new kitchen with no plumbing. It looks finished until the moment someone tries to turn on the water.

A good estate plan is one that’s both understood and installed. Accounts line up. Deeds transfer. Beneficiaries match the design. Nothing is left waiting for “later.” That’s when advisors can finally exhale.

Where we fit in

Estate planning doesn’t fall apart because clients don’t care. It falls apart because the sequencing is complex, the details are easy to postpone, and the follow-through demands more coordination than most people expect. Our platform smooths the whole renovation—not just the design phase. Here’s how:

• Guided decision paths keep clients from skipping critical steps or getting overwhelmed.
• Legal Logic™ catches structural issues early, before they turn into real problems.
• Embedded attorneys provide clarity and reassurance long before confusion takes root.
• Shared dashboards show advisors and clients exactly what’s complete and what still needs attention.

The result: a plan that works. Clients feel supported. Advisors don’t chase loose ends. And the estate plan stands with a solid foundation.