In addition to managing all of one’s assets effectively in the present day, another key aspect of financial health is being able to plan for the future. What will happen when you’re no longer around? Will your estate be in good hands?
There are many elements that play into this, including guaranteeing your property will be well handled and also taking care of the more negative aspects of managing your estate, such as handling any lingering tax responsibilities that might burden your family.
It makes sense to start early with your estate planning. Procrastination is unwise.
Many choose to wait until their old age to address the challenges of estate planning, but the reality is you never know what the future might hold. It’s best to start planning early rather than procrastinate. Taking steps now to look after your estate can be tremendously helpful to yourself, your family and everyone else around you.
All the aspects of an effective plan
When most people think of estate planning, their minds go first to the most obvious aspects, such as leaving your home and other major pieces of property to the people closest to you. That is certainly part of the process, but estate planning is also a much deeper game than that.
According to the Australian Investors Association, there are many elements that go into developing a plan. One of them is ensuring that all of your assets are legally committed to the right beneficiaries. Beyond that, you have added concerns such as minimising taxes payable by those beneficiaries. Are there estate taxes that will need to come out of your assets? How can you reduce that financial burden? Additionally, if there are details that need to be worked out with powers of attorney, testamentary trusts or superannuation, you should take care of those during the planning process.
There are so many things to address with the typical estate that it’s a grave mistake to put them off. Careful planning requires time and a great deal of attention to detail.
You might need a team to help
If you have a sizable estate to your name, there’s a good chance that you’ve gotten where you are today thanks to your hard work, intelligence and business sense. Given all of this, it’s natural to want to press forward with estate planning on your own, figuring out all the details yourself.
According to Forbes, however, this often isn’t advisable, especially if your estate is particularly large or complex. It’s becoming more common for people to work with entire teams of planners who can help them understand all the angles.
You might need a whole team of lawyers for your estate.
Such a team typically includes a financial advisor to help with building an investment portfolio, a tax professional to help with income taxes and an attorney who specialises in estate planning. You might think you can figure it all out yourself, but the truth is there’s no match for an experienced property lawyer in situations such as these.
We have experience at McCarthy Durie Lawyers
If you do decide to seek legal help with planning your estate, there’s no better course of action than to turn to McCarthy Durie Lawyers, where we have a wealth of experience handling these cases. We know how to handle wills and estates from every angle, including analysing litigation cases, superannuation and succession planning. There’s no situation we aren’t prepared for.
Over the years, we at McCarthy Durie Lawyers have assisted thousands of people with their various estate planning needs, and we’re prepared to work with you next. If you’re in need of estate assistance, contact us today and we’ll work together to overcome the challenges in front of you.
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