From the conversations I had with many of my fellow Christians friends I noticed that there is a general lack of understanding of what Christian Estate Planning is all about. To begin with, a Christian’s “Estate” refers not only to material assets that we leave behind when we passes on, but also to our Christian faith, value and beliefs. We have to plan for the transfer of these spiritual assets as well.

What is so unique about Christian Estate Planning?

Christians need to understand the meaning of Stewardship and how it affacts our Estate Plan. God owns all of our worldly possessions (regardless of how we acquired them)

(i) God owns everything (Ps 24:1) “The world and all that is in it belong to the LORD; the earth and all who live on it are His.”

(ii) Our ability to create wealth is given to us by God (Deuteronomy 8:18) “Remember that it is the LORD your God who gives you the power to become rich.”

By reminding ourselves that God owns our possessions and we are only stewards, we begin the process of estate planning with the appropriate frame of reference. Christian Stewardship is a spirituality and way of life consisting of - receiving God’s gift (our abilities, talents & wealth) with gratitude; cultivating them and sharing them lovingly in justice with others; standing before our Lord in spirit of accountability.

We need to serve God who owns our assets and to use them for the strengthening of our fellow Christian as well as helping the poor and needy. Also, we have to constantly remind ourselves that we are transfering Stewardship and not merely ownership to our heirs.

A Christian approach to Estate Planning will surely lead a Giver’s heart to Jesus! To learn what it takes to be a wise Steward and adopt a God-honoring way of wealth transfer, pls contact us.

I might not be the best father, son or husband on this earth, but the least I could do is to plan my Estate in such a way to ensure that my loved ones are well taken care of when I am no longer around. Beside my family, I have always wanted to give to my preferred Charities on a long term basis. To do so, I had a Will done together with a Living Trust set up. A life insurance was assigned into my Living Trust to provide for immediate Estate liquidity with a pour over provision in my Will so that a portion of my Residuary Estate will be transferred into my Living Trust. My wife was appointed as the first Executor & Trustee and having Rockwills Trustee Ltd as the contingent Executor & Trustee.  In my Letter of Wishes, I made provisions for annual payments to my loved ones and designated Charities as well as payouts for medical treatments of my elderly parents and tertiary education funding for my children.

Why the hassle of having a Will and Living Trust set up? Most Singaporean friends and people I spoke with have not done a basic Will let alone a Living Trust! My personal belief is that I am only a Steward of all that have been given to me - my material wealth and loved ones. As a professional Estate Planner, my passion and mission is to encourage my clients and friends to have an Estate Plan drawn up providing care and support to their loved ones as well as Charity. I believe in walking the talk - How can I expect others to incorporate Planned Giving in their Estate Plan when I myself did not do It? Fulfillment in life to me comes from enlightening the minds and touching the hearts of those I cross path with so as to help make life better for their loved ones as well as the underprivileged and needy in our Society. So if I happen to talk to you about providing for your loved ones and the Charity, be mindful that I am only helping you plan your legacy of eternal love. Many little drops make an ocean - Planned Giving - even if it is a small amount of money will make a lot of difference if everyone of us does our little part.

For a no obligation meeting to share some thoughts on the above, please drop me an email - attention to Philip Khoo.

1. The implication of Intestate Succession Act (Cap. 146) in the event of a common disaster* happening to both her and her daughter, her Assets could possibly end up with her ex-husband. 

2. In the event if she were to pass away suddenly, her ex-husband could apply to Court to be the sole guardian of her daughter (even though Mdm Tan would very much want her sister to take care of her daughter if she is no longer around).

3. If Mdm Tan were to pass away Intestate, her assets will go to her daughter. As she is a Minor, the Public Trustee shall hold on to the money until her daughter reaches age 21. No money will be left to her elderly parents!

On another occasion, I came across a successful businessman Mr Lim (not his real name) married with 2 children. His parents had passed away many years ago. His wife, who is a few years younger than him, was close to her only mother who is dependent on her financially. Mr & Mrs Lim, together with their children travel oversea frequently. In my conversation with Mr Lim I sensed that he was not on good terms with her mother-in-law. I was further surprised that he had not done up a Will. In view of his business success, surely someone must have told him about the importance of writing a Will! When asked why he did not write a Will, his replied was that according to his knowledge if he were to pass away, his wife and children will inherit her Estate. Even though he loves his wife, he sounded a concern that he wanted his business to pass on to his children when they grow up. A check with our legal counsel reveals following potential problems -

1. The implication of Intestate Succession Act (Cap. 146) in the event of a common disaster* happening to him, wife and 2 children, his Assets (business and all) could end up with his mother-in-law.

2. His wife and children who are currently not running the business will have difficulties managing the business if he were to pass away. Besides, there is nothing to stop his wife from marrying another man who would then manage the business.

(Note* - Under the Civil Law Act (Cap. 43), in all cases where two or more persons die in circumstances rendering it uncertain which of them survived the other or others, such deaths shall (subject to any order of the Court) for all purposes affecting the title to property be presumed to have occurred in order of seniority and accordingly the younger shall be deemed to have survived the elder i.e. for simultaneous deaths, younger deemed to have survived the elder.)

Mdm Tan and Mr Lim were taken aback when I shared with them the potential problems and difficulties should they passed on without leaving a properly executed Will. Remember, for the sake of your loved ones, do not procrastinate and have a Will done! To review your Will or have a Will drawn up, you can contact us for a complimentary 1st consultation.

You may have drawn up a Will and had decided on the distribution of your Estate but your Estate may be significantly depleted due to outstanding medical expenses incurred prior to death. As a result, little or no money left behind to take care of your loved ones or survivors. In a worse scenario, your survivors may have to look for money to pay for the medical expenses you left behind when you are gone.

So what are the types of Insurance you need to consider?

Proper structuring of your insurance plans can not only prevent leakages from your Estate, it can also help you to create an instant Estate in the event of pre-mature death happening to you. Protect your Assets today while you are still healthy and insurable. The longer you delay the chances of being uninsurable increases as you age.

To know how to incorporate insurance into your Estate Plan or to identify the shortfalls in your insurance coverage, you can contact us for a complimentary 1st consultation.

People whom I’ve met that are contributing to Charities on a regular basis usually balk at donating away a lump sum of their Assets while still alive - a main reason cited was the fear of needing money in the event of some unforeseen contingencies. If you belong to this category of donors, a simple and effective way of Planned Giving you can consider is that of Charitable Bequests. You can name your favorite Charity as a Beneficiary in your Will and indicate a certain percentage of your Residuary Estate to be given to this Charity. The lump sum could be assigned into a Trust managed by a Professional Trust Company so that a fixed percentage of Trust Assets could be given yearly to your favorite Charity. With these arrangements, you can revoke your Will and Testamentary Trust in your lifetime and make necessary amendments according to changes in your financial status.

Charitable Bequests should be incorporated as one of your financial objectives when doing up your holistic Wealth Plan or comprehensive Estate Plan. This is to ensure that the needs of your dependents are not jeopardized while at the same time fulfilling your philanthropic interest - making a lasting gift that will have a long-term impact on the beneficiaries of your favorite charity long after you have left this world. Click here for more information on Planned Giving.

Many of us have heard this song by the late John Lennon almost every Christmas. It never fails to remind us to reflect on our past experiences and the events so far. This song has greater significance in view of the financial crisis, the greatest hedge fund scam, the melamine scare, retrenchments etc.

Everyone of us will experience both dark and cheerful times. Happiness comes from which you want to focus on. As we reflect on the year 2008, we need to ask ourselves what have we done right this year? Did we achieve our 2008 resolutions we set early this year? Were there decisions or actions that could be better dealt with?

As we are approaching Christmas and the coming new year, let us take a step back to ponder how are we to improve our lives by asking ourselves 12 months from now, what need to have happened in the following areas in order to feel we have made good progress in our lives -

Career or Business

Is there a way we could develop our competencies through courses, training and self-development? Could we take advantage of government training grants to upgrade our skills or business competitiveness?

Spirituality

What do we believe as the true purpose of our lives? Life is more than just paper chase, business or career success. These inner beliefs will enable us to discern the right life choices and to live a balanced life. What am I here on earth for? How can I live for others and help the unfortunate ones around us?

Health

Our physical, emotional and social well being that affects our outlook in life. A good health translates into a happier person. Is there anything we can do to improve them? What about taking up some new hobbies or sports?

Finances

Have we got a holistic Wealth plan in place? A review of our financial goals and how to better organize our finances. Do we have a budget drawn up to manage our expenditures so as to increase our savings? How else can we save more money by cutting down on unnecessary spending?

Family & friends

No man is an island. Catch up with family and friends to maintain or build meaningful relationships. Has anyone close affected by the financial crisis? How are our elderly parents or friends coping? Can we help? Conversely, these people can also provide us with the emotional and financial support to tackle our life challenges ahead.

Hopefully when we celebrate Christmas in 2009 we could look back in delight and say that we had spent a year of our lives well. Here’s wishing you a Blessed Christmas and a fulfilling new year ahead!!

And now in times of financial crisis, we are beginning to read them in the newspapers as well as hear among our friends and relatives. The common mistakes include -

1. Overleveraging - investing in several investment properties thinking of flipping them to make quick profit but incurred losses when the property bubble burst.

2. Speculating in shares - savings lost due to speculations in the stock market.

3. Living beyond one’s means - incurring credit card debts to finance the high life and unable to pay back when they lose their jobs. Recent numbers from Credit Counselling Singapore (CCS) reviewed that overspending was the main culprit in 57% of cases of debtors seeking help this year compared with 52% in 2006.

The reasons for such predicaments could be due to the lack of financial literacy, misplaced values as well as refusal to seek proper financial advice etc.

How can you avoid the financial follies and manage your finances well? You can if you choose to. Let us look to the Ants for guidance and inspiration…

1.Ants never quit

If their headed in a certain direction and we try to stop them, they will climb over or look for another way round.

Lesson

What is the purpose of money in your life? Review and prioritize your financial goals - Financial independence, children tertiary education funding, financial security for self and family etc. Focus on your goals and not be distracted by the negative news or obstacles around us.

2.Ants think winter all summer

Ants gather their winter food and saved them during summer time for they know that good summer times will not last forever.

Lesson

Be realistic with your cash flow management - never assume that the job or business that is generating income will always be there. Spending more than you earn and relying on credit to finance your high life is going to get you in trouble should you lost your job or business. Always live within your means, save money for rainy days and invest to build up retirement funding. Proper asset allocation to reduce investment risk is critical for wealth accumulation. You are here today but may be gone tomorrow…have you done your Will? Have you ensured that you and your loved ones have the necessary life and medical insurance coverage?

3.Ants think summer all winter

During winter ants always remind themselves that the winter will not last forever. The moment they see the sun light, they are out.

Lesson

Keep your composure and remain positive despite all the negative news during times of financial crisis. For those who have investments, review them and restructure them into a diversified portfolio that can help you to ride out the bad times. For those who have surplus cash (after setting as emergency funds), you can seek financial advice to sift out investments of good value. Unpredictable events will always affect the financial market causing it to go through peak and trough. The key to investing is all about time in the market and not timing the market.

4.All that you possibly can

Ants gather as much as they can during summer time to prepare for winter.

Lesson

Try your best to put your financial affairs in order. Seek qualified financial advice to help you structure a holistic Wealth Plan and take necessary actions to implement it. This will help cater to your needs for wealth accumulation, management and protection as well as put in place an effective Estate Plan.

Remember, your financial affairs should be reviewed as a whole and not piecemeal. Have a holistic Wealth Plan drawn up if you have not done so. For more information about holistic Wealth Plan, click here for a complimentary 1st consultation.

Dick Hoyt would, a retired Lieutenant Colonel with the Air National Guard in US. Together, Dick and his son Rick Hoyt have run numerous Triathlons (including Ironmans) as well as marathons. After watching this story via youtube, one couldn’t hold back the tears and be inspired. When we sit back and reflect upon it, whatever problems we might have is little when we experience this story of a father’s love for his son and a son’s love for his father. What frustrates life is not pain but a lack of love. We may have achieved numerous accomplishments but the one great failure in life is to have lived without loving.

Running a marathon for the love of a handicap child is no easy task. Not many are able to do it. I am sure there are many such people who have sacrificed much to take care of their handicap children or elderly parents. Many such caregiver have this concern - how to ensure that their dependents are taken care of should he/she pass on?

A living Trust or testamentary Trust with the appointment of a professional Trust company as Trustee could be the answer to this concern. Individual Trustee may pre-decease the handicap children or elderly parents. Greater professionalism and continuity are provided by a Trust Company to ensure that the financial needs of handicap children or elderly parents are taken care of in the event the main caregiver is unable to do it…

If you’ve not heard about Dick and Rick Hoyt, it’s about time that you look up the internet for their stories… be touched and inspired.

The PADI shall include the following information –

1. Personal information and location of documents.
2. Testamentary matters – location of Will and details of Will-writer.
3. Listing of bank accounts, other assets and their locations.
4. Liabilities or debts payable and to whom
5. Special instructions / notes.

It is important that this record be revised and updated at least once a year. This will allow your Executor to access to your assets and distribute them to your beneficiaries promptly with little hassle or delay. Make life easier for your Executor so that he/she can better help your loved ones …

Many of us are caught in the rat race and hardly spend time with our loved ones; taking for granted our family and friends who have been with us all these times. We just need to stop for a moment and ponder in our heart…Have we forgotten about the many blessings that we received, our friends, spouse and children? Have we ever said to them that we love them?

When a person passes on, his/her Will distribute all the material belongings or assets to loved ones. However, there is a document that is equally as important as a Will that most people left out – Letter of endearment. This letter expresses our love, feelings, thoughts and last words of advice to our loved ones. Why is it important? Material goods or monies will be spent away over time but the words of love will remain in our hearts forever.

It is important to write letters of endearment to your loved ones and have them kept together with your Personal Asset & Document Inventory. How to write these letters of endearment? Let your heart guide you - reflect on the past, apologies for past neglect or hurts caused, thankful for all your blessings, express your love, words of consolation and finally ending with advice for your loved ones on the importance of living a meaningful and fulfilling life…