GETTING OLDER

It happens. It is a bit hard to avoid! A useful checklist for putting matters in order along the way could be as follows:

1. Get a Will made, if you have not already done so. Dying without a will leaves a problem for those left behind. If the will was made more than 5 or 10 years ago, review it.

2. Get a Lasting Power of Attorney done. Most people have had the experience with a family member or friend where they reached a point where they could not deal confidently with key decisions regarding their health or finances and would benefit from help from someone they can trust. The Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) puts an arrangement in place so that the named person or persons can act on their behalf.

3. If you are single and your possessions, including your property, are worth in excess of £325,000, or if you are married and the value of your joint estate exceeds £650,000, find out how Inheritance Tax affects you and see if there are some simple actions you can take to minimise or avoid gifting Inland Revenue 40% of part of your estate.

THE TIME LORD AND WILLS

Do you know that you can go back up to 2 years before a person died and make amendments to their will? You can use what is called a Deed of Variation. As long as all the beneficiaries agree to the proposed changes, the will can be altered either to save on tax or just to make the result fairer to all beneficiaries. Of course, there does need to be a will in the first place, so do make sure you have one and it is up to date. (And do think seriously about arranging LPAs – Lasting Powers of Attorney).

SUMMERTIME TIPS

While there are a lot of changes on the horizon politically we believe that that best way to deal with personal finances is keep to the basics of providing a valuable service or product and ensuring that you have more money coming in than going out.

Lasting Power of Attorneys (LPAs) and Wills – reminder. It may be that the older one gets the more aware one is of older people and the challenges that come in later life. Certainly we do see more situations where Wills and LPAs (Lasting Power of Attorney) are important. We do recommend that you seriously consider setting these up or reviewing them if you already have them.

STAYING UP TO DATE

Recently when completing our Lasting Power of Attorney, my wife and I had occasion to review our Wills. Written 25 years ago, needless to say that they needed updating for various reasons including the fact that one of the executors we had appointed to look after our children had recently passed away. The moral of the story is to do a regular review of these important matters.

GETTING OLD

It happens. A useful checklist for putting matters in order when dealing with someone who is getting old (even yourself!) could be as follows:

1. Get a Will made. Dying without a Will leaves a problem for those left behind.

2. Get a Lasting Power of Attorney made. Most people have had the experience with a family member or friend where they reached a point where the friend or family member could no longer deal confidently with key decisions regarding their health or finances and would benefit from help from someone they can trust. The Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) puts an arrangement in place so that the named person or persons can act on behalf of their friend or family member.

3. Make a plan regarding any Inheritance Tax that might have to be paid when you die. For those who

add up the value of their estate including property value and find it is less than £325,000, a simple note showing what you added up – the items and their values, would probably be enough of a plan.