Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Before you can plan how to distribute your assets after your death, you need to understand what your estate is. In the most casual sense, your estate is your stuff or all your possessions. In addition to understanding what your estate is, you also need to know what your estate is worth. First you make a list of positive balance items such as:
Cash, checking and savings accounts
Certificates of deposit (CDs)
Stocks, bonds, and mutual funds
Retirement savings in your Individual Retirement Account (IRA), 401(k), and other special accounts
Household furniture (including antiques)
Clothes
Vehicles
Life insurance
Annuities
Business interests
Jewelry, baseball card collection, autographed first edition of Catcher in the Rye
You calculate your estate’s value as follows:
Add up the value of all of the positive balance items in your estate.