6 Financial Moves You Should Make By Dec. 31: Wills, Trusts, Iras, More

Daniel de Visé, USA TODAY Sun, December 8, 2024

We’re nearing the end of 2024. So it's an especially good time to assess what financial moves you should make before the clock runs out. Luckily, financial planners spend the final weeks of the year thinking about just such things.

Back in 2023, we asked several experts for their thoughts, and we made a list of six key financial steps to take by Dec. 31. Readers responded, so we reached out to the same experts again this year, along with one or two new ones, to see if their advice had changed. The answer: Not really.

Here are their suggestions, which include bolstering retirement savings, tweaking insurance coverage and seeking savvy tax shelters.

Update Beneficiaries On 401(K), Life Insurance Policy

A typical investment account or life insurance policy requires you to name beneficiaries, the loved ones who will get the money upon your demise. For many of us, beneficiary designations function as an estate plan: they’re legally binding and dictate what happens to a large portion of your assets.

Some people don’t get around to naming beneficiaries. Births, deaths and family feuds can change the estate-planning landscape. The end of the year is a good time to take stock.

“I suggest making sure your beneficiaries are up to date on your investment accounts,” said Colin Day, a certified financial planner in St. Louis.

“It might not be the first thing people think of, but you will be surrounded by loved ones during the holiday season,” Day said. “It's a great reminder that you love and support these people, and you want to make sure your hard-earned dollars will get to them if something were to happen.”

Review Estate Plan And Insurance Coverage

More broadly, the year’s end is a good time to review your estate plan, powers of attorney and insurance coverage, said Paul Mendelsohn, a certified public accountant in Livingston, New Jersey.

“Do you have life insurance, long-term disability insurance and long-term care insurance?” Mendelsohn said. If not, should you consider getting them? Long-term care insurance, perhaps the least-known of these three, helps cover the costs of assisted living and nursing homes.

Keep in mind, Mendelsohn said, that if one spouse has an insurance policy through work, “it does not cover the other spouse.”

If you haven’t done so recently, “schedule a meeting with an estate planning attorney to create or update your will, health care directives and other legal documents,” said Niv Persaud, a certified financial planner in Atlanta.

Make Charitable Donations And Gifts

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