4 Key Tools That Help You Fool-Proof Your Estate Planning
Before we delve in deeper, let me first explain what estate planning is, and why it matters. Simply put, it is having a plan which ensures that the people and causes that you care deeply about receives your financial legacy in an efficient and effective manner. We may all think that we have all the time in the world to put this off, or that our family members can handle it, but we never know what tomorrow may bring, and our families having the assurance of a well-planned estate puts their minds at ease during a period of grief and bereavement. Not having an estate plan delays the distribution of assets, costing both time and money for family members to laboriously trace funds through multiple financial institutions. It may even lead to disputes between your loved ones due to ambiguity and discrepancy with your true intentions, as intestacy laws take the default distribution arrangements.
Now that I have hopefully convinced you of the importance of estate planning, let’s look at the 4 key tools.
1. Make sure that your insurance policies pay out to your nominated recipients in a timely and smooth manner. This can shorten the estate distribution process from months to within days.
2. Draft a will to express your wishes and intentions. This eliminates ambiguity and makes disputes less likely to occur.
3. Doing up a CPF nomination for your CPF monies prevents additional administrative charges and delays, ensuring that these funds are distributed quickly and without hiccups.
4. Granting a lasting power of attorney to trusted loved one(s) allows them to make decisions on your behalf, preventing personal assets from being frozen if you should unfortunately lose your mental capacity due to illness or accidents.
Shirlene Toh
Financial Services Consultant
