Creating a Will and Estate directory

Estate Planning & Creating a Will

By Martin de Kock (CFP®)
Director of Ascor® Independent Wealth Managers

Talking about Estate planning or a last will and testament sometimes feels like giving health or dental advice.

People listen to your advice and suggestions with a kind of guilty unease of someone who is listening to the dentist talk about the necessity to floss regularly. You know that the advice is important, but you feel like it is something you can worry about later.

Just imagine the implications for your spouse or life partner if you leave him/her behind with no Estate plan. Apart from dealing with the grief of having lost a loved one, the person must deal with hordes of unexpected claims and requests from anyone and everyone that you owe money to or have done business with.

The implications can be even more dire. Consider a recent case of a couple who passed away in two separate incidents, only days apart. Without a Will, the State decides what happens with their assets and, importantly, with their children.

If you pass away without a last will and testament in place, not only will the Government handle your affairs, but your spouse may lose out on unclaimed insurances and benefits that he/she is not aware of.

Leaving your final affairs to the State will also incur additional costs that could have been avoided by giving clear instructions in a Will.

To prevent this from happening, speak to an ASCOR® CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER about creating a Will and drawing up an Estate plan and directory. These should be kept up to date and should be revised at least once a year.

Apart from ensuring that your next of kin get the best possible assistance and all the assets due to them, creating and maintaining a Will has the additional benefit of forcing you and your financial advisor to review your affairs and to make sure that it serves your best interests.

Reviewing your Will before you leave on holiday, for instance, may give you new ideas as to how best to invest or spend your money or it may highlight some preferences or ideas that you had in the past and that, in retrospect, are no longer relevant or applicable.

While creating your Will, you should also consider completing an Estate Directory. This directory is a comprehensive catalogue of every part of your life, including items often not thought about. Think about any club memberships, passwords, special friendships and even social media accounts that would need to be notified or closed if you pass away.

ASCOR® has created a comprehensive Estate Directory, which is available on request.

Having created Estate Planning and Wills for hundreds of clients, ASCOR® would be perfectly suited to assist you in creating a Will that would perfectly suit your needs and take care of your spouse and children should you pass away.

https://ascor.co.za/creating-will-estate-directory/

https://ascor.co.za/financial-planning-women-survivors-checklist/

https://ascor.co.za/financial-planning-women-protecting-household/

https://ascor.co.za/drafting-a-last-will-and-testament/

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Estate Planning & Creating a Will

By Martin de Kock (CFP®)
Director of Ascor® Independent Wealth Managers

Talking about Estate planning or a last will and testament sometimes feels like giving health or dental advice.

People listen to your advice and suggestions with a kind of guilty unease of someone who is listening to the dentist talk about the necessity to floss regularly. You know that the advice is important, but you feel like it is something you can worry about later.

The implications can be even more dire. Consider a recent case of a couple who passed away in two separate incidents, only days apart. Without a Will, the State decides what happens with their assets and, importantly, with their children.

If you pass away without a last will and testament in place, not only will the Government handle your affairs, but your spouse may lose out on unclaimed insurances and benefits that he/she is not aware of.

Leaving your final affairs to the State will also incur additional costs that could have been avoided by giving clear instructions in a Will.

To prevent this from happening, speak to an ASCOR® CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER about creating a Will and drawing up an Estate plan and directory. These should be kept up to date and should be revised at least once a year.

Apart from ensuring that your next of kin get the best possible assistance and all the assets due to them, creating and maintaining a Will has the additional benefit of forcing you and your financial advisor to review your affairs and to make sure that it serves your best interests.

Reviewing your Will before you leave on holiday, for instance, may give you new ideas as to how best to invest or spend your money or it may highlight some preferences or ideas that you had in the past and that, in retrospect, are no longer relevant or applicable.

ASCOR® has created a comprehensive Estate Directory, which is available on request.

Having created Estate Planning and Wills for hundreds of clients, ASCOR® would be perfectly suited to assist you in creating a Will that would perfectly suit your needs and take care of your spouse and children should you pass away.

Read more on Ascor® Estate planning

Related topics

https://ascor.co.za/creating-will-estate-directory/

https://ascor.co.za/financial-planning-women-survivors-checklist/

https://ascor.co.za/financial-planning-women-protecting-household/

https://ascor.co.za/drafting-a-last-will-and-testament/

Estate Planning & Creating a Will

By Martin de Kock (CFP®) Director of Ascor® Independent Wealth Managers

Talking about Estate planning or a last will and testament sometimes feels like giving health or dental advice.

People listen to your advice and suggestions with a kind of guilty unease of someone who is listening to the dentist talk about the necessity to floss regularly. You know that the advice is important, but you feel like it is something you can worry about later.

The implications can be even more dire. Consider a recent case of a couple who passed away in two separate incidents, only days apart. Without a Will, the State decides what happens with their assets and, importantly, with their children.

If you pass away without a last will and testament in place, not only will the Government handle your affairs, but your spouse may lose out on unclaimed insurances and benefits that he/she is not aware of.

Leaving your final affairs to the State will also incur additional costs that could have been avoided by giving clear instructions in a Will.

To prevent this from happening, speak to an ASCOR® CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER about creating a Will and drawing up an Estate plan and directory. These should be kept up to date and should be revised at least once a year.

Apart from ensuring that your next of kin get the best possible assistance and all the assets due to them, creating and maintaining a Will has the additional benefit of forcing you and your financial advisor to review your affairs and to make sure that it serves your best interests.

Reviewing your Will before you leave on holiday, for instance, may give you new ideas as to how best to invest or spend your money or it may highlight some preferences or ideas that you had in the past and that, in retrospect, are no longer relevant or applicable.

ASCOR® has created a comprehensive Estate Directory, which is available on request.

Having created Estate Planning and Wills for hundreds of clients, ASCOR® would be perfectly suited to assist you in creating a Will that would perfectly suit your needs and take care of your spouse and children should you pass away.

Read more on Ascor® Estate planning

Related topics

https://ascor.co.za/creating-will-estate-directory/

https://ascor.co.za/financial-planning-women-survivors-checklist/

https://ascor.co.za/financial-planning-women-protecting-household/

https://ascor.co.za/drafting-a-last-will-and-testament/

By Martin de Kock (CFP®)
Director of Ascor® Independent Wealth Managers