estate planning

Estate Planning (for non-Muslims)

According to Wikipedia, Estate planning is the process of accumulating and disposing of an estate to maximize the goals of the estate owner. The various goals of estate planning include making sure the greatest amount of the estate passes to the estate owner's intended beneficiaries, often including paying the least amount of taxes and avoiding or minimizing probate court involvement. Additional goals typically include providing for and designating guardians for minor children and planning for incapacity.

Potential Benefits of Estate Planning

• Surplus - Ensure that the assets left behind have the capacity to accomplish what you want for your family.  

• Liquid - Proper Planning will ensure that your valuable "frozen" and "semi-frozen" assets (e.g. real estate properties, stocks & shares, investments held in joint accounts etc) would not have to be sold off at "fire sale" prices to pay for estate expenses. 

• Easy Distribution - Ensure that your family will get the assets left behind for them at minimum delay & confusion. 

• Maximize Assets Passed on to Your Family - By keeping the legal and other administrative costs (collectively known as "estate expenses") to the lowest possible level, thus ensuring the maximum value of your assets will ultimately end up in the hands of your family.  

• Taking Care of Specific Needs - Actual assets that your family members receive matches their specific and unique needs (e.g. dependent parents, infant children, disabled siblings etc.)   

• Instilling Proper Values - Your children do not get their hands on your assets until they have the maturity to deal with them.  

• Taking Care of Business Continuity - By ensuring that your business interests can be passed on to your family with minimum disruptions to the business. 

• Minimize Disputes - Over the appointment of Executors, Trustees and most importantly, your minor children's Guardians (e.g. your relatives or your spouse's relatives?)  

• Minimize Conflicts - Between Beneficiaries (e.g. do you know your Will can be challenged under the Inheritance of Family Provision Act (IFPA)?)

Why do YOU need Estate Planning before writing your Will?

According to Singapore's law, your Will CANNOT distribute the following types of assets:

1.  Joint-tenancy properties, including joint bank accounts

2.  CPF monies

3.  Certain insurance policies with nominations, including Section 73 (of CLPA) policies

4.  Properties whereby you are the trustee holding on behalf of someone else

Hence, when you write your Will to say "50% to my Spouse, 50% to my Children" - do you really know how much in absolute terms will be given to your beneficiaries?

Most of us have the bulk of our assets in properties, CPF and insurance policies payout, hence, whatever left to distribute under the Will may very well form just a very small portion of our total Net Worth.

I once showed a client on how much in absolute terms he is distributing to his 2 sons, and he candidly remarked "Wow! I could have given them this amount while I am alive!"

Our Estate Planning Analysis Report will give you the following figures:

-   How much of your Total Net Worth will be distributed under your Will

-   How much will flow out of your estate as "Estate Expenses"

Our first session for Estate Planning is entirely complimentary, that is, at our cost.  If you don't like what you see, you do not need to proceed any further.