Questions to consider for Estate Planning

Here is a list of questions everyone should consider for estate planning.

1. Do you have clear legalized instructions to the government directing what you would like to have happen to your assets and children when you pass away?
2. Should you become incapable of handling your important personal affairs and need the help of someone, do you have legal instructions that a trusted person could present to the banks and other institutions to help conduct business for you?
3. Should you become critically ill and on life support, are your wishes written and legalized directing the authorities what you would like them to do? Or do you prefer the hospital or state to make that decision for you?
4. When you pass away, taxes will become due.
   1. Do you know what types of taxes will become due?
   2. Do you know how to calculate these taxes?
   3. Who will pay these taxes?
   4. Where will the money come from?
5. When you pass away, your estate will incur taxes and other professional fees
   1. Do you know how to calculate the estate tax in your province? And how much it will be?
   2. Do you know what types of professional fees will become necessary?
   3. Do you know what will actually happen to your investments?
   4. Do you know what will be charged to your investments?
   5. Do you know where the money will come from to pay the fees and charges, especially if there are no clear instructions on how to settle your estate?
   6. Do you know how much of your investments will actually get to your love ones?
6. When you pass away, concerning your debt
   1. Do you know what will become of the debt?
   2. Do you know what will happen to your assets?
   3. Who will pay the debt?
   4. Where will the money come from?
   5. What will the financial institutions do to get their money?
   6. What will your love ones do when the debt is pinned on them?
   7. Where will they live in the event that the bank forces them to sell the property to get back their money?
   8. How soon would they be able to pay off the debt?
   9. How aware are you with understanding the amount of debt that will become due if not paid promptly?
7. With your loss of income when you pass away
   1. How will the expenses you normally pay get be paid?
   2. Where will the money come from?
   3. What will become of your family if these expenses are not paid?
   4. How about the children’s development?
   5. How will the surviving spouse earn money while tending to the children?
   6. How much money will be available to help the youngest child reach adulthood?
   7. Where will the money to fund the children’s education come from?
8. Concerning the wealth (small or large) that you have built/acquire
   1. What would you like to be done with it?
   2. Are your wishes documented?
   3. Can you share with us what you believe will happen if you do not have a formalized document with your instructions to be follow?
   4. How much options have you explored to determine how to transfer your wealth in the most efficient and effective way to minimize any taxes and charges/fees that would be done on you assets?
   5. For businesses, how much have you explored into the use of solutions that would protect your family and business partners when the inevitable happens?
   6. How about setting up structures for your money in your business to get to your family or the right people instead of creditors?
9. How much capacity do you have to independently
   1. Learn all of the items above?
   2. Acquire all the facts relating to estate planning and taxes
   3. Complete all the financial and tax calculations?
   4. Write the required documents to the legal standard acceptable to the courts
   5. Identify and acquire the knowledge of the financial institutions that specializes in the various areas of estate planning?
   6. How long would it take for you to learn and acquire the necessary government license to implement the needed solutions?
   7. How much time do you have available to implement all the needed items mentioned above? How much have you completed so far and how long has it taken?
   8. Who will verify your Estate planning to ensure that everything was completed to the required standards?
   9. Who will be the executor of your estate and how well will you prepare them to do the best job on your estate.

I would be happy to hear your thoughts on this and my other Psychology of Money Intelligence posts so please feel free to DM me on LinkedIn or book a short discussion in my calendar (https://bit.ly/short-dis).