Why retirees need to update their will

Retirement is a trigger event

If your will was made before retirement, it’s probably out of date. Retirement brings changes that affect your estate:

Assets are different (super drawdown, pension, downsizing proceeds)
Your family structure has likely changed (grandchildren, divorced children, new relationships)
Your wishes may have evolved
Your chosen executor may no longer be appropriate

A will review at retirement is as important as a health check.

Your assets have changed

Pre-retirement, your assets might have been:

A home with a mortgage
Superannuation accumulating
Maybe some savings

Post-retirement, you likely have:

A paid-off home (or different property after downsizing)
Super in pension phase (different tax rules apply)
Cash from downsizing
Possibly inheritance from your own parents
Different investment structures

💡 Downsizing: If you've sold the family home, where did those funds go? Your will needs to address cash and investments, not just property that no longer exists.

Grandchildren considerations

For many retirees, grandchildren change everything:

Do you want to leave anything directly to grandchildren?
Should gifts be held in trust until they’re older?
How do you treat grandchildren fairly if your children have different numbers of kids?
What about step-grandchildren from your children’s relationships?

Your original will probably didn’t anticipate these questions.

Children’s circumstances change

Your adult children’s lives have evolved:

Some may be financially comfortable, others struggling
Marriages, divorces, new partners
Their own children (your grandchildren)
Health issues or disabilities
Business successes or failures

You might want to treat children differently based on their needs — or ensure inheritances are protected from divorcing spouses.

Executor review

The executor you chose decades ago:

Are they still alive and healthy?
Are they still willing and able?
Are they significantly older than you? (Not ideal)
Do they have the skills for a potentially complex estate?

Retirement is a good time to reconsider executor appointments and have fresh conversations.

Super in retirement

If your super is now in pension phase:

🇦🇺 In Australia: Reversionary pension nominations (where your pension continues to a surviving spouse) need to be set up correctly. If your spouse dies first, you'll need to update these arrangements. Check with your super fund.

Also consider:

Are your binding nominations current?
Who gets remaining super when you die?
Tax implications for beneficiaries

Powers of Attorney become crucial

In retirement, the risk of losing capacity increases. Make sure you have:

Enduring Power of Attorney (Financial) — For someone to manage your money
Enduring Power of Attorney (Medical) / Advance Care Directive — For health decisions

These should be updated alongside your will. Old documents might name people who are no longer appropriate or available.

Aged care considerations

If aged care is a possibility:

Understand how your assets affect aged care costs
Consider whether gifting now affects aged care assessments
Plan for the possibility of one spouse in care while the other isn’t
Ensure your Power of Attorney covers aged care decisions

Charitable giving in retirement

Many retirees want to support causes they care about:

Leaving a percentage of your estate to charity
Specific gifts to particular organisations
Establishing a charitable fund
Memorial donations

This is only possible through your will.

What to do now

Find your current will and read it carefully
List what’s changed since it was made — assets, family, wishes
Review your super arrangements and nominations
Update your Powers of Attorney
Use our Preparation Checklist to organise everything
Make a new will that reflects your retirement reality
Have conversations with your family about your intentions