Estate Planning

Estate Planning

Sinclair Upton Capital Management helps make sure your last wishes are carried out

In simple terms, estate planning is the process of anticipating and organising your financial affairs during your lifetime to arrange the desired dispersal of your assets, minimise tax and provide the best legacy to your loved ones and cherished good causes. Putting a master plan in place, long before it comes into effect also allows time for discussion with your family about your final wishes to ensure they are not unduly burdened at what is already a traumatic time for them. Open discussions can avoid difficult arguments after your death which can and have affected family unity.

Sinclair Upton Capital Management helps you to make those final decisions as to what you want to happen with your assets and, time willing and subject to your wishes can start distributing assets to take advantage of allowances many years beforehand. These plans can, of course, be altered should your preferences change.

Without proper planning, family arguments can arise, and vast portions of your estate can be swallowed by legal fees and unnecessary taxation.

Fulfilling your wishes through estate planning

Your intentions and objectives are personal and for you alone to decide but it is impossible to carry out those wishes without a clear and detailed vision of what it is you want to achieve. Financial consequences are not the only factors to be taken into account when organising your estate, and your feelings and aspirations play a crucial role in making these decisions.

Below are some of the factors you may want to incorporate:

• The financial well-being of your family
• Making sure that your assets are safeguarded for your beneficiaries
• Preventing arguments amongst your family, business partners, or third parties (legal or governmental)
• Providing for your descendant’s education
• Donations to good causes
• Keeping control over or making sure your property is suitably managed in case of incapacity
• Lessening estate taxes and other expenses
• Averting probate
• Making sure there is enough cash to settle the estate without having to sell assets (such as the family home)
• The smooth handover of your business to your beneficiaries

“In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”

—Dwight D. Eisenhower