Estate planning

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When you talk about legacy, I don't think that it's just after you're gone, what have you left? I think it's how you've lived your life the whole time.

The legacy that I'm the most interested in leaving is the one about having been responsible for what I was given, and doing the best job of making sure that those resources have been used in the best and most efficient and most effective and most impactful way. A part of that part is making sure that we're working with our sons to educate them, and get them ready to take over that part of that legacy.

My role has always been not only to manage their investments, but be a guide, help navigate through many financial choices they have. To do that successfully, it is important for me to be very knowledgeable about who they are, their family histories, their goals, their wishes, and their values. You need a plan that includes insurance, estate planning, business succession, charitable giving. You need other experts to contribute. And that is the role that Arnie, Jamie, and others play.

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As anybody who has children, you want to make sure that you're giving them the best values you can, especially with the responsibility and the challenges that come with large amounts of wealth.

We have tried as best as we can to be intentional parents in all aspects. Life is busy, and sometimes we've been less intentional than others. But in this area, we're trying our best to instill in them some responsibility with money.

We want to think about how we're living our lives now, and what we're being involved in, and the causes that we're supporting.

They're getting to the stage where they're making plans for what they're going to do after high school is over. And so we're working through how to make sure they remain motivated. So that's a bit of a challenge to thread that needle. And so that's something that I'm sure we'll be looking to Harp to give us some insights on as well. It's worth mentioning that Harp has brought us several resources over the years regarding training our boys with becoming good stewards of money.

I think actually when your kids are teenagers, they quite often prefer having other people than their parents give them advice and information. So it's a very good time for us to be bringing people into their lives who can give them advice and to just share some wisdom.

And it changes over time. In a 15-year-old, in a 17-year-old, there's different planning that needs to take place at that stage versus when they're getting involved in relationships. There is another type of planning that you want to look out for, so it's an evolving piece. It isn't just doing and going through a planning process, and now we're done.

So even if tomorrow morning, all is taken away, I'm confident that they'll have learned principles that would help them to avoid problems later in life, just because they've hung around and seen the advice that we've been able to get over these years.

RBC Wealth Management is Canada's leading wealth manager. Our approach brings the best of RBC to you. Our resources, solutions, and full access to our team of experts, through one single contact, your wealth manager. Simply put, there's wealth in our approach.

The need for tax-smart estate plan, has never been greater. With the massive baby boomer generation inheriting trillions of over the coming decades, and taxes on those inheritances likely to remain high. Here's some tips for creating your tax-smart estate plan. First of all, make sure your will is up to date, especially if there have been important changes in your life. Your will names your beneficiaries and your executor. Consider having an open discussion with your family, you may feel uncomfortable about doing this. But it can help your family understand your intentions, and what they might need to do. One of the things you may want to discuss with your family is your choice of executor.

It's an honor to be named an executor, but there are a lot of responsibilities. Make sure your chosen executor is comfortable with what they will have to do. And remember, you don't have to choose a family member. Especially if you have a complicated estate, it may make more sense to choose a professional executor. You may also want to discuss taking care of certain family members. Perhaps you have younger children or grandchildren that you want to provide for. You can leave them a bequest through a testamentary trust in your will, or you can create a family trust during your lifetime. Trusts have important tax advantages when they are properly structured. Let's assume your beneficiaries have no other income. For example, a minor child, they can earn about $10,000 of interest income tax free, every year on the assets you transfer into the trust.

Here's another way you can reduce the impact of taxes on your estate, with life insurance. Consider this, if you leave $300,000 in your RSP or riff when you pass away. Your estate may have to pay as much as nearly half of that in tax, that's nearly $150,000. Similarly, your estate may have to pay taxes on any capital gains on things like your investments, your cottage, and US property. With a life insurance policy, you can cover these taxes. It can be very cost effective because the insurance premiums are often just a fraction of the tax bill. As always, with insurance, it's most cost effective when you're younger and in good health. One last tip for creating a tax-smart estate, and it's important. Make sure you speak with a qualified legal professional first, before you put any estate planning strategies in place.

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When I was 14, my father was diagnosed with cancer. The doctors gave him six months to live and six months later almost to the day he passed away. My mother was my father's power of attorney and she was spending 7:00 in the morning until 11 o'clock at night every day, Monday to Sunday at the hospital with him. So then fell to my siblings to do that. I remember distinctly my siblings coming over and going through the bills and writing checks. This isn't about whether or not you're capable, this isn't about whether or not you have some sort of expertise as a financial professional or anything like that, it comes down to how you're going to use probably one of the most scarce resources, all of us have individually as individuals have. And that's our time. And if I had to be my mother's power of attorney, I would rather spend the time, that time with her. And I think that's the freedom that you get with the service.

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We're dealing with baby boomers that upto the stage of retirement, that are caught in the sandwich generation. Still dealing with the care of their parents, also still dealing with their children. And the concern they have is just the time management for the most part.

The sandwich generation is real. It is absolutely real. We want to be able to step in when that need arises and be available for families, to help them through what is probably the most difficult situation they're ever going to have to deal with.

Being appointed as an attorney is a huge responsibility. Because you need to make financial decisions, and look after the financial assets of that individual throughout their lifetime.

One of the things that a lot of people don't realize is that they are taking responsibility. And they have to do it properly. They have to do it efficiently.

But we're here to help, I am going to be your contact. And so we are going to work together as a team. You choose what you'd like us to do and will do it and maybe there's certain things you want to take care of yourself certain aspects of the administration, maybe you want to look after the taxation, but you don't want to have to deal with the audit administration. The payment of bills, dealing with pension department, going to the various financial institutions to have the assets collected and transferred. The benefits in appointing us is that you have qualified professionals with the expertise, we have the resources to provide the accounting, to provide the investment management, to do the tax returns.

For the individuals who entrust us with the responsibility of acting on their behalf, it's giving them time to then go and invest with that family member or that friend. And to create those memories that 20 years later, you're going to look back on and say I'm really, really glad I did that.

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We all know the importance of regular health check-ups, but when was the last time you took a look at your Will or estate plan?

Is it overdue for a check-up?

Most legal professionals recommend reviewing your plan every 3 to 5 years, and any time you experience a major life event, such as:

• A marriage;
• The disability of a dependent; or
• The death of a beneficiary, spouse or executor, to name a few.

For example, a common misconception is that your assets will automatically pass to your surviving spouse in the event of your death. But, if you haven’t properly documented your wishes through a valid Will or beneficiary designations, you may be considered to have died “intestate”.

This means your assets will be administered under the intestate succession legislation for the province or territory where you live.

So, it’s possible your spouse may not receive all of your estate assets—even if this was your intention.

Protect your loved ones.