tax planning
In theory, your bank accounts should be frozen in the event of your death. However, in practice, there is generally a delay between your death and the appointment of your executor whose job it is to notify your financial institutions
The wealth accumulation phase generally requires more robust and strategic financial planning as you intentionally work towards achieving financial freedom. With higher levels of income and a well-crafted financial plan, your financial goals should feel within reach, and you should
Something that many people tend to overlook is that all previous Wills should be both physically destroyed and revoked in writing as failing to do so can cause uncertainty for those left behind -especially if one or more of the
The due diligence procedures applied by financial institutions will generally be sufficient to identify the account holders and controlling persons. For example, a bank that opens a bank account for a trust with foreign beneficiaries could be expected to request
Whereas traditional advice was often designed to address a specific need in a client’s portfolio - generally in the form of a commission-based product sale - lifestyle planning takes a holistic view of the portfolio to identify shortfalls or areas
Life insurance can play an important role in creating liquidity in your deceased estate and ensuring that the forced sale of assets after your death is avoided – keeping in mind that estate solvency is different from estate liquidity. While
Remember, the residue of your estate is what is left after all debts and estate costs have been paid, and after all, bequests have been made, so it is important to ensure that the inheritance intended for your heirs is
Endowments are complex investment policies that generally cater for investors with a marginal tax rate of 30% or more and can also make useful estate planning tools. As the policyholder, you can elect who the life assured and nominate beneficiaries
In the absence of an emergency fund, you may be forced to access debt in order to pay for the unforeseeable expense you are faced with, keeping in mind that short-term debt is normally expensive. Ensure that you always have
Through the retirement fund harmonisation process, the options at retirement have been streamlined across pension, provident and retirement annuity funds, although there remain certain technicalities when dealing with the vested benefits in respect of provident fund contributions made prior to
