Get that Will in Order!
Has it been some time since you last sat down and thought about your estate planning? Do you know exactly where your assets will go and how they will be distributed to your estate beneficiaries? Do you know whether your estate will have to pay tax and where the money for this will come from?
It’s our belief that everyone has a responsibility to leave their financial house in order, and yet many people still leave this until it’s too late. We don’t offer legal advice in our business, but we do help people become aware of the outcome that their money will have on those they leave behind.
What’s more, it’s never too early to set up a Will once someone turns 18. Chances are an 18 year old will have a superannuation fund with an amount of life insurance in it, and this needs to be taken care of. Don’t leave it up to the Public Trustee to decide where your assets go.
To get started, you might like to ask yourself some of these questions:
Do you have a valid Will that is regularly reviewed?
When making a Will, consider who you would like to act as your Executor. Make sure the person in this role knows something about your financial position and what your wishes are.
Do you have children under 18 who need a nominated guardian? Consider who would be best to take care of your children.
Do you have children from a previous relationship? In most cases these children need to be provided for in order to reduce the risk of an estate being contested.
Have you considered an Enduring Power of Attorney, which allows someone to act on your behalf if you lose mental capacity? If you don’t have one in place, in the unfortunate event of not having the capacity to maintain your affairs, control of your assets may pass to a government body such as The Office of the Protective Commissioner.
And don’t forget your Super! Binding nominations are effective choices as to which beneficiaries receive your superannuation entitlements and in what proportions. Please note that if these nominations are not kept up-to-date, you could find your super money is distributed in the way you had not preferred. Your superannuation assets don’t always automatically fall into your estate.
Do you have life insurance and have you checked the beneficiaries of these policies match your wishes?
Have you considered Testamentary Trusts? These trusts are formed on the death of a person if they have specified for this to happen in their Will. The main benefits of testamentary trusts are their ability to protect assets and to reduce tax paid by beneficiaries from income earned from the inheritance.
Many Wills can be quite simple in nature but others will require a lot of prior planning and consideration. Take the time to think about how you’d really like your estate distributed, as it usually represents a lifetime of effort.
If you have any specific questions on how to best update your estate planning, always remember we’re only an email or phone call away.