A well executed estate plan is very little help if key documents can’t be found. The most important are the will and any trusts that may have been executed. But besides these obvious documents, financial records are just as important. The executor of your estate or the trustees under the trust need to know what they are being called on to administer.

While most people don’t want to think about dying, and few people sit around thinking of what a mess those left behind might have to deal with, the fact is that besides your estate plan, you should leave detailed instructions about what assets you owned. The simplest way to deal with this is to keep a loose leaf notebook that is current in terms of what you own (real property, bank accounts, stocks, vehicles, etc.) and where it is located. Then make sure those who will deal with your estate know where to find the notebook.