Addressing your digital assets as part of your estate plan

One of the purposes of estate plans is to provide the estate planner with peace of mind regarding how all of their affairs will be dealt with at the end of their life. One aspect of a person’s life that has become more prevalent in recent years is their social media presence and digital assets.

A person’s online accounts will need to be dealt with at the end of their life, for both financial and social reasons. Therefore, it is important that you reflect on how you would like these digital assets to be dealt with and that you address them as part of your estate.

The financial value of digital assets

Some digital assets hold a significant financial value, of which you will likely want to be distributed to your beneficiaries. For example, you may have assets held within your Etsy, eBay or PayPal accounts. These will be near-impossible to access unless you have recorded the login details in a secure place.

The sentimental value of digital platforms

It is likely that a lot of information and memories are held within your accounts. For example, you may have a lot of family photos held on your computer or within the cloud. It is likely that you will want these photos to be enjoyed by your loved ones for years to come.

Social media directives

Finally, many people have clear intentions for how they would like their social media accounts to be dealt with after their death.

If you want to address your digital assets as part of your estate plan, you should take action to learn how this can be done effectively.