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A typical will may cost you a few hundred dollars. Not having a will could cost your family a lot more. Do you care enough to write your last love letter?
Will Cost
Your will and powers of attorney are your last chance to tell everyone what you want to happen with your possessions and money. In Canada, you can:
write it yourself;- buy a will kit under $20 at places like Chapters;
- hire a local lawyer for a few hundred to over a thousand dollars;
- take advantage of your #LegalSavingsPlan.
A will can cost you from just your time to a little over $1,000. With a Legal Savings Plan, you can spread that cost, making it more managable and then keep your will up to date.
Whatever method you choose, Wills should be reviewed and notarized by an attorney or lawyer to minimize the chance of being challenged after you die. The cost of not having a will could be much greater.
Cost Of No Will
Did you know that according to a study by the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) of over 544,000 Canadians with a net worth of over $1.5million, only 40% had a will? And of that group, 80% were out of date? Understand that if you don’t have a will done or up to date, you’re not alone. The question is, will you change that for yourself?
The cost of not having a will could be:
- unneccesary taxation;
- additional estate management fees;
- loss or devaluation of your business;
- your dependants losing their pension;
- family disharmony;
- the list could go on…
Your estate would go into escrow while the government assigned trustees to oversee the disposition of your estate. Everything is locked in place and you can’t make changes that could have had tax benefits. Your business would be a disaster because no one has any signing authority until a trustee is assigned. Any dependants that may be on a disability pension could lose their benefits when they finally inherit from your estate because there was no Henson Trust. Family fights break out over the simplest of things.
What does a will cost? When you keep your will up to date, there is a financial cost. There are ways to manage that. If you die intestate, your family could end up in disarray fighting over things as small as a favourite family photo because you didn’t care enough to make your wishes clear.
Whether you write your last love letter or not, there will be a cost. Which is greater? Having up to date wills and powers of attorney not only has the potential to relieve stress on your family when you die, it has the potential to take stress off yourself while you live.
Make it a great day!
Barry
P.S. What am I thankful for today? I’m thankful for my legal service provider. I’m thankful for my experience in financial services. I’m thankful for opportunity.
What are you thankful for today?
Please share ...
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