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It’s with this in mind that we have put together some of the most important things to consider to ensure your family’s future is taken care of:
It is vital to create your Will while you have full mental capacity to do so. You can establish your chosen executors, beneficiaries of your estate, preferences for your funeral etc. Once created, review your Will regularly and make sure it is exactly want as circumstances change.
This allows your named representative to communicate your preferences for life sustaining medical treatment should you become suddenly incapacitated and unable to make those decisions for yourself.
LPAs are separately created to deal with either property and finance, or health and welfare. Putting both in place now will give you peace of mind that you will be looked after in accordance with your stated wishes, should you become unable to make decisions for yourself in the future. This can be particularly important as dealing with the express wishes of the deceased can sometimes be a point of contention; don’t let this happen to you or your family.
Gather together and store safely any deeds, title documents, official certificates; details of important contacts, online accounts; evidence of significant gifts made in recent years. Although this point may seem trivial, you’d be amazed by the problems this lack of documentation could lead to. Ensuring that all the information is in one place will make it easier for the Executors (who are often your loved ones) to quickly and accurately value your estate for the inheritance tax return that must be submitted to HMRC. Additionally, as more and more of our assets are only accessible online, you should think about leaving details of your online accounts and passwords with a trusted person so that they will be accessible in the event of your death.
Outside of your Will, if you have life insurance, pensions etc, review your beneficiaries as the transfer of such assets on your death is governed by your stated choices, not by your Will, this can catch a lot of people out; don’t be one of them.
Help your executors by ensuring that your tax returns are up to date and your tax records are safely filed together when received.
Assume you will be the first to go! Remember, joint assets pass automatically upon death, not relying on the Will or waiting for Probate, therefore money or other day to day difficulties immediately following your death can be avoided by reviewing the ownership of important and liquid assets.
Finally; don’t keep your plans to yourself! Talk to your loved ones, chosen executors and attorneys about your wishes and where to find things when the time comes.
If you have a query about any of the topics mentioned in this article, please fill in the form below and one of our experts will be in touch.
When you die without a will (known as dying intestate) your loved ones may run into inheritance tax wrangles, family politics and various issues they probably won’t be in a mindset to manage. And leaving an out-of-date will could mean your assets won’t go where you want them to.
If you’re thinking about retirement and safeguarding wealth for your family’s future, work with us to write a will that’s flexible enough to deal with changes in circumstance. Then you can feel confident your wishes will be met.
Estate planning for life
It’s never too early to think about a lifelong plan to protect your future and that of your loved ones and dependents. Speak to us about practical tax planning and how to prepare for future challenges. We can advise on everything from your individual wealth (including ‘non-dom’ tax) to the family as a whole.
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