As we sit here in Waterloo, Ontario, we’re almost out of our third and lengthy lockdown.  It looks like there’s hope on the horizon, but moving through challenges can certainly act as a catalyst for a plan of action. In this case, drafting and review of your estate plan, will or powers of attorney.

It’s important to take a look at these on an semi-regular basis to ensure they’re up-to-date and accurate. Here’s a couple of things to consider when thinking about your personal situation

• Has any market downturn significantly impacted your estate?
• When thinking about your distribution of assets, have your wishes changed at all?
• Thinking about your executor, are they still willing and able to accept this role? Are they still local or are they getting significantly older?
• Thinking about the guardians for your children, are they still appropriate?
• If you put age restrictions on when your children would receive their inheritance, are these still appropriate? Or, should they be held in trust for a longer or shorter period of time?
• Are there any gifts that you should consider?
• Have you given, or are you continuing to provide financial help to one of your children which is out of proportion to the others? Do you intend for it to be considered a gift, or do you want it to be taken into account when they receive their inheritance?
• Do you want to consider adding permanent insurance to your overall financial plan to cover some of the costs to your estate upon your passing?
• Thinking about your Powers of Attorney for personal care and finances, do you have these in place should you not be able to act for yourself? There are two separate documents to consider: one detailing health-related decisions and a one that provides direction regarding your finances.

At the Allan Bush Investment Team, we feel a comprehensive estate plan should always incorporate the “what ifs” that may have come up over the last 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Often in times of crisis, we’re able to have the gift of perspective that allows us to think about and see unexpected events that could occur. As always, we have an integrated team of hand-picked professionals, including estate planning specialists and lawyers should you need to speak to someone in the days and weeks ahead.