Enrichment · Life Skills

The list your family
would need to find.

When someone dies or cannot manage their affairs, the hardest part is often finding things: which bank, which retirement plan, who it names, where the deed is. Add each asset and debt with how it is owned. The inventory nets it out, shows which assets pass by beneficiary or joint ownership instead of the will, and flags the out-of-date designations that send money to the wrong person.

Add an assetWhat you get
$5one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $5

Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the Life skills kit, $29 for 28 items.

Your assets and debts

The worked example is made up: a jointly owned house with a mortgage, a 401(k) still naming a sibling from 2012, a checking account in one name and a car loan. Keep only the last four digits of any account. Saved on this device only.

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What you get

Enrichment · Life Skills$5

What you finish with
A record per asset or debt: what it is, kind, institution, last four digits, how it is owned, beneficiary or co-owner, when that was last confirmed, value, amount owed, the date of the value, where the papers are and five checks. Works out the net value and how each one generally passes; totals net worth by route; flags full account numbers, retirement or insurance with no beneficiary, beneficiaries not confirmed in three years, unknown ownership, undated values and missing papers.
Who it is for
Adults organizing their own affairs, adult children helping a parent, and anyone named as an executor.
Format
Browser inventory with a saved record per asset. Prints one asset, the whole inventory in a table or a blank sheet; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); exports and imports a file.
Access
$5 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Also in the Life skills kit ($29) and the Enrichment Suite pass ($119), and 1 more bundle. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Life Skills space in Caveat Enrichment.
Support
Questions about access, an order or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Gather the latest statements, deeds and policies.
  2. Add each one with how it is owned and who it names.
  3. Type only the last four digits of any account.
  4. Call about any beneficiary not confirmed in three years.
  5. Print the table, store it with your will and tell your executor.

Add an asset

Where things go

How assets generally pass at deathBeneficiaryRetirement accounts,life insurance,payable-on-death andtransfer-on-deathaccounts.Paid to the namedperson, outside thewill.Joint ownerProperty heldjointly with rightof survivorship.Goes to thesurviving owner,outside the will.TrustAnything titled in aliving trust’s name.The trustee followsthe trust, outsideprobate.EstateEverything else inone person’s namealone.Passes under thewill, or state lawif there is none,usually throughprobate.How assets generally pass at deathBeneficiaryRetirement accounts, life insurance,payable-on-death and transfer-on-deathaccounts.Paid to the named person, outside the will.Joint ownerProperty held jointly with right ofsurvivorship.Goes to the surviving owner, outside thewill.TrustAnything titled in a living trust’s name.The trustee follows the trust, outsideprobate.EstateEverything else in one person’s name alone.Passes under the will, or state law if thereis none, usually through probate.
General rules only. Details, including community property and small-estate procedures, differ from state to state; an estate attorney can say how they apply.

The form beats the will

A beneficiary designation on a retirement account or life insurance policy is a contract with that institution. If the will leaves everything to a spouse but a 401(k) form still names a sibling from years ago, the sibling is usually paid. Federal law adds one protection: most employer plans must pay a surviving spouse unless the spouse signed a waiver.

Keep it safe

An asset list is a map for a thief as well as a family. Keep last four digits only, no passwords, and store the printout with your will or in a locked place. The file you export stays on your computer unless you move it.

Sources

  1. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Managing someone else’s money guides, and help for survivors (consumerfinance.gov).
  2. U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration. Retirement plan beneficiary designations and spousal rights under ERISA (dol.gov).
  3. Internal Revenue Service. Retirement topics: beneficiary (irs.gov).
  4. American Bar Association. Estate planning: guide to wills, trusts, probate and nonprobate transfers (americanbar.org).

The worked example is made up. This is an organizer with general information, not legal or tax advice; how property passes depends on state law and your documents. Nothing you type is sent to Caveat. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.