If you wish to leave behind a lasting legacy, whether it's for family and loved ones or a charitable institution, then you need to put a well-thought-out Estate Plan in place, so that your legacy is established in accordance with your wishes. Without such a Plan, strangers (CRA, Lawyers or individuals that don't have your best interests in mind) could determine what happens to your Estate.
Having an Estate Plan is paramount If you wish to ensure that you are in control of what happens to your estate and that it be handled in accordance with your directives.
Estate planning is a vital component to ensuring one’s legacy is passed on with as little disruption as possible. People spend a lifetime accumulating assets and building an estate with the intention of passing it on to heirs or charitable beneficiaries. Without proper planning, a person’s death can create significant hardship for the people for which the estate was created.
For example, an estate passed to heirs could face settlement costs, such as probate fees. In some cases, if taxes at death are substantial, assets may have to be liquidated in order to pay them. Also, the actual transfer of assets could be delayed by probate proceedings bogged down by any contestable assets.
Sound estate planning can help eliminate problems that sometimes arise during estate settlement, and should help you accomplish the following:
1. Ensure your wishes are honored if you are unable to manage your own affairs.
2. Make certain your wishes and expectations are communicated precisely to your family and heirs.
3. Provide for your family’s financial security.
4. Arrange adequate capital to meet any immediate liquidity needs for settlement costs.
5. Facilitate the timely distribution of assets by avoiding probate proceedings.
6. Minimize taxes and expenses resulting in an easy transfer of the estate.
7. Ensure all beneficiaries are named in accordance with the most recent will, avoiding publicity by keeping proceedings out of the public record.
8. Conserve the estate so later generations can benefit.
9. Leave a charitable legacy with a gift of assets or a trust.
Family Meetings
Family meetings that allow for everyone’s input are an important part of estate planning, and should be conducted prior to an estate plan’s development. Many of our clients feel holding these meetings in our offices provides a comfortable, neutral location.
Family meetings are especially helpful when real estate, rental properties, cottages or chalets are passed to beneficiaries. Often, little thought is given to the ongoing operating costs and taxes associated with such legacies, and dealing with these considerations in advance, as a family, helps reduce the possibility of any future conflict.
Basic Estate Planning Arrangements
One of the primary objectives of an estate plan is to ensure that your assets are transferred in accordance with your wishes. A qualified attorney can help you determine which estate planning arrangement will work best for you.