The 10 Stages of Estate Planning: A Wealth Manager’s Guide for Dallas Area Families

Your estate planning attorney can draft a will or trust that holds up in court. What they usually can’t do is tell you what’s actually sitting inside your IRA, who your beneficiaries are, or whether your accounts are even titled correctly. That’s a different job and it’s the one we’ve spent the last two decades doing for hundreds of families across North Texas.

Estate planning isn’t a single document you sign once and forget. It’s an ongoing process that touches your accounts, your family, your CPA, and your attorney all at once, which is exactly why it works best when your wealth manager is coordinating the pieces, not just holding the assets.

Why Estate Planning Takes More Than an Attorney

An attorney’s job is the legal document, the will, the trust, the language that will hold up in probate court. But the document is only half the picture. Once it’s signed, someone still has to make sure your accounts are titled correctly, your beneficiary designations match your intentions, and your custodian actually knows what to do when the time comes.

That’s where the McGowanGroup team comes in. We coordinate directly with your estate planning attorney. After every review, we send a recap of our recommendations to both you and your attorney. That way, nothing falls through the cracks between the legal plan and the accounts that plan is supposed to control.

This is also why we treat estate planning as a recurring checkup rather than a one-time event. Every summer, our team goes through a full estate-plan checklist with clients because life changes, tax law changes, and a plan that was airtight five years ago may have gaps today.

The 10 Stages of Estate Planning

Stage 1 - Beneficiary Designations & the Per Stirpes Election

This is the step people assume is already handled and it’s often the one with the biggest gaps. Most retirement accounts have a primary beneficiary listed (usually a spouse), but the contingent beneficiary the backup gets forgotten more often than you’d think, especially on old 401(k)s rolled over years ago.

Here’s why it matters: if there’s no contingent beneficiary and both primary account holders have passed away, the account can trigger an immediate tax event and get pulled into a much messier process than it needed to be.

There’s a second, less-understood decision that goes with this: whether to add a per stirpes designation. In plain terms, per stirpes means that if your named beneficiary say, your son or daughter, passes away before you do, their share passes down to their children (your grandchildren) rather than reverting to a sibling or someone else entirely. Without it, you could unintentionally skip a generation you meant to include.

Stage 2 - Choosing an Executor or Trustee

Naming the person (or institution) who will carry out your wishes is one of the harder decisions in the entire process and it’s rarely just about trust. It’s about capability, availability and whether that person can handle the responsibility without the situation turning into a burden.

For most families, this role goes to a trusted friend or family member. For larger or more complex estates, a corporate trustee can make sense. Corporate trustee fees have come down significantly over the years, what used to run close to 2% is now typically closer to half a percent, which has made this option far more practical than it once was, particularly as trust assets grow.

If you’d like, we can include your chosen trustee on a review call once you’re ready, so they understand the role before they ever have to step into the role.

Stage 3 - Will vs. Living Trust

This is one of the most common questions we get, and both paths are legitimate, they just come with very different processes.

A will requires your named executor to file the document with the probate court, obtain a letter testamentary authorizing them to act, and typically open a separate estate account before assets can move. That process alone often takes several weeks at minimum, and if an attorney is involved in the filing, it adds cost on top of the time. If the will doesn’t specifically address every asset, those gaps have to be resolved during probate which can slow things down further.

A living trust is structured differently from the start. Spouses typically serve as co-trustees, similar to how a joint account works, with a successor trustee named to step in if something happens to both of you. Because the trust already owns the assets, there’s no probate process to go through, the transition happens the way it was designed to, without a court filing in the middle of it. Most living trusts also include a “pour-over will,” which catches anything that wasn’t formally moved into the trust and directs it there after death.

In our experience, a living trust generally creates a smoother transition for families but, the right answer depends on your specific assets, your state and your goals. This is exactly the kind of decision worth walking through with both your attorney and your wealth manager before you commit to one path.

Stage 4 - Trustee Bootcamp: Preparing Your Successor

Naming a trustee is one thing. Making sure they actually know what to do is another and it’s a step a lot of families skip entirely.

We keep a confidential document vault with a copy of every client’s will or trust, and we review it every summer planning season to make sure it’s current. When a trustee is named, we walk them through the document in what we call “trustee bootcamp,” so they understand not just that they’re in charge, but what their fiduciary responsibility actually requires of them. That standard is meaningfully higher than what’s expected of someone acting under a simple power of attorney, and it’s a distinction that matters more than most people realize.

We’ve seen firsthand what happens when that education doesn’t happen. In one case, an aging client’s power-of-attorney holder used funds from the account for a personal purchase almost immediately after stepping into the role. A clear example of why a POA doesn’t carry the same accountability as a properly trained trustee, and why some families are better served naming a corporate trustee instead. Trustees we’ve trained also receive an ongoing newsletter to keep their knowledge current over time.

Stage 5 - Coordinating Your CPA, Attorney & Wealth Manager

Your CPA, your attorney, and your wealth manager all need to be working from the same information and that starts with something simple that gets overlooked constantly: making sure your wealth management team actually has a copy of your trust or will, not just the knowledge that one exists. If all we know is “there’s a trustee,” we don’t know what we’re actually supposed to do when it matters.

This coordination pays off in concrete ways. When a spouse passes away, for example, getting a written appraisal of the family home at the date of death can preserve a valuable step-up in cost basis, but only if it’s documented properly and in writing. Similarly, filing a Form 706 after a spouse’s death can preserve their unused federal estate tax exemption for the surviving spouse (a strategy known as portability), but that filing has to happen within 90 to 120 days, or the exemption is lost for good. These are exactly the kinds of deadlines that fall through the cracks when your team isn’t working together as a team.

Stage 6 - Charitable Planning Strategies

For clients who give substantially to causes they care about, there are structures that make giving more tax-efficient without changing your actual charitable intent.

Donor Advised Funds let you contribute appreciated assets, not just cash and take the tax deduction in the year you contribute, even if you decide later exactly how and when to distribute the funds to specific charities. Once established, the fund generally needs to distribute a portion annually, but you retain the ability to direct where the money goes over time.

Charitable Remainder Trusts work differently: assets go into the trust, income is paid out (to you, your heirs, or a designated party) for a period of time, and the remainder ultimately goes to the charity — or you can structure it the other direction, with the charity receiving income and your heirs receiving what’s left. Either way, the contributed assets move out of your taxable estate, which can be a meaningful strategy for higher-net-worth families with strong charitable intent.

Stage 7 - Gifting & Navigating Estate Tax Exemption Changes

Annual and lifetime gifting strategies are among the most underused tools in estate planning, often because people assume they don’t apply until an estate reaches a certain size. That assumption can be costly.

Filing a Form 709 tracks gifts against your lifetime exemption. Even if you’re well under today’s exemption threshold, using some of that exemption now can protect you against future legislative changes that lower it a real possibility, since exemption levels have shifted meaningfully over the past decade and can shift again. Waiting until you’re “sure you’ll need it” sometimes means missing the window entirely.

For families with land, ranches, or other illiquid assets, Family Limited Partnerships remain a useful structure for gifting ownership interests to the next generation gradually, while retaining control over management decisions. It’s a strategy that has supported multi-generational wealth transfer for large landholding families for decades, provided the partnership terms clearly spell out who has authority, who’s eligible to participate, and how ownership passes through future generations.

Stage 8 - Ladybird Deeds (Texas Transfer-on-Death Deeds)

Texas is one of a handful of states that allows what’s commonly called a “Ladybird deed,” an enhanced life estate deed that lets a home transfer directly to your named beneficiaries when you pass, without going through probate.

It works much like a transfer-on-death or payable-on-death designation on a bank or investment account: you file the deed with the county, and after death, your beneficiaries execute a simple affidavit to complete the transfer. For families who’ve already set up TOD or POD designations on their other accounts, this closes the one gap that’s easy to overlook, the house.

Stage 9 - Adapting the Plan to Life Changes

An estate plan built for your life ten years ago may not reflect your life today. Marriages, divorces, births, deaths, and simply changing your mind about who should inherit what all mean the plan needs another look which is exactly why we treat this as a recurring summer checklist rather than a one-time project.

This stage is also where a lot of family conflict gets prevented before it starts. Defining what’s “fair” especially for sentimental or physical property that doesn’t split evenly and having that conversation with your family before it becomes urgent goes a long way toward avoiding disputes down the road. Part of our role is proactively coordinating with beneficiaries and when tension does arise, working to defuse it before it escalates.

Stage 10 - Final Estate Processing & Distribution

When the time comes, what actually happens depends heavily on how the earlier stages were handled. Retirement accounts with properly named beneficiaries typically transfer directly to those beneficiaries without going through the estate at all. Taxable accounts without that structure, on the other hand, may need to pass through an estate account and probate before they can be distributed which can disrupt everything from routine banking to income continuity for the family left behind.

This is where having an experienced team matters most, one that takes the initiative to keep the process moving and coordinates with everyone involved, rather than one that waits to be told what to do next.

5 Things You Can Do Right Now

It’s estate plan checkup season. Here’s where to start:

1. Update your beneficiaries. Review every account that has one and every account that should have one. Make sure they reflect your current wishes.
2. Put a will or living trust in place if you don’t already have one, and talk through which structure fits your situation with your attorney and wealth manager.
3. Make sure your wealth manager has a current copy of your will or trust on file, not just a name, but the actual document.
4. Secure a record of your digital passwords and account access somewhere safe, and make sure someone you trust knows how to access it if needed.
5. Put “fairness” in writing for personal property that doesn’t divide evenly and have the conversation with your family before it becomes necessary.

Lessons From Hundreds of Estates: Common Mistakes We Help Families Avoid

After two decades of processing estates, certain patterns show up again and again:

• Relying on a power of attorney without understanding its limits. A POA doesn’t carry the same fiduciary standard as a trustee, and we’ve seen that issue create real financial harm when the person holding it wasn’t held to a higher standard.
• No named successor when a trustee needs to step back. Family conflict sometimes makes it necessary for a trustee to hand the role to a corporate trustee instead having that option in place ahead of time prevents a scramble later.
• Wills that haven’t been read or updated in years. It’s more common than people expect for a client to forget what’s actually in their own will and to need an amendment once they see it again.
• Missing the window on estate tax portability. The 90-to-120-day filing deadline for a Form 706 is easy to miss if your team isn’t coordinated, and once it passes, that exemption is gone.

Why Families Work With McGowan Group for Estate Planning

• Two decades of hands-on experience processing estates — not just drafting documents
• A confidential document vault, reviewed every summer planning season
• Direct coordination with your attorney and CPA, with a recap after every review
• A structured trustee education program, plus an ongoing newsletter to keep named trustees current
• A team that proactively manages beneficiary communication and family dynamics — not just custody of your accounts

Frequently Asked Questions About Estate Planning

What’s the difference between a will and a living trust in Texas?

A will directs how your assets are distributed but requires your executor to go through probate court, which typically takes several weeks and can involve added legal costs. A living trust holds your assets directly, so they can pass to your beneficiaries without probate but it requires more upfront setup to fund the trust properly.

Do I need both an estate planning attorney and a wealth manager?

Yes. Your attorney handles the legal document itself. Your wealth manager makes sure your actual accounts, beneficiary designations, and custodians are aligned with that document and coordinates with your attorney and CPA so nothing gets overlooked.

What is a per stirpes designation, and do I need one?

Per stirpes ensures that if a named beneficiary passes away before you, their share goes to their own children rather than being redirected elsewhere. It’s worth discussing with your advisor any time you’re naming children or grandchildren as beneficiaries.

What is a Ladybird deed, and is it available outside Texas?

A Ladybird deed is a transfer-on-death deed for real property, available in Texas and a small number of other states. It lets a home pass directly to your named beneficiaries without going through probate.

What is a donor advised fund and how does it help with estate taxes?

A donor advised fund lets you contribute cash or appreciated assets, take the tax deduction the year you contribute, and decide later how the funds are distributed to specific charities, making it a flexible tool for tax-efficient giving.

How often should I review my estate plan?

At minimum, annually and any time you experience a major life change such as marriage, divorce, a birth, or a death in the family. We build this review into our summer planning process with clients.

What happens to my IRA vs. my taxable brokerage account when I pass away?

An IRA with properly named beneficiaries typically transfers directly to them without going through probate. A taxable account without similar protections may need to pass through an estate account first, which can slow distribution and disrupt cash flow for your family.

Do I need a corporate trustee, or can a family member serve?

Many families are well served by a trusted family member or friend. A corporate trustee is worth considering for larger or more complex trusts, or in situations where family dynamics make a neutral third party the better choice.

Serving Estate Planning Clients Across North Texas

We work with families throughout Dallas and the surrounding communities including Frisco, Plano, McKinney, Highland Park and Prosper to build estate plans that hold up as families and tax law both change over time. Wherever you’re located in North Texas, our process stays the same: coordinate with your attorney and CPA, keep your plan current, and make sure the people you’ve named are ready for the responsibility.

Schedule Your Estate Planning Review

We look forward to helping you and your family plan for the decades ahead. Reach out and let’s make sure everything is in place for your family.

• Call us – we actually answer the phone (214) 720-4400
• Email: [email protected]
• Meet however works for you, Zoom, in-office, or a conference call

McGowanGroup Asset Management, Inc. is a Federally Registered Investment Advisory Firm utilizing Pershing LLC, a BNY Mellon Company for asset custody.

The information presented is for informational purposes only and recommendations are only made as part of an Investment Plan with the McGowanGroup. Actual results will vary for individual client accounts due to customization, strategy elected, advisory fee schedules, timing of additions and withdrawals, diversification, length of relationship, and size of positions among other reasons. Please remember that different types of strategies involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance on the future performance of any specific investment or investment strategy.

Any questions or concerns with this presentation should be directed to our Compliance Officer at (214) 720-4400 or at [email protected].