Estate Planning
Make your wishes clear – and your family’s future easier to manageGood financial planning protects the people you care about today and helps make sure your intentions are carried out in the future.
Bring the financial and legal pieces together
A will is an important starting point, but a complete estate plan may also need to consider enduring powers of attorney, ownership structures, trusts, insurance, debt and the cash your estate may need. Sureplan helps you look at these issues as part of your wider financial strategy. We identify gaps, clarify what you want to achieve and coordinate with suitable legal and tax professionals where specialist advice or documents are required.Bring the right advice together
We coordinate with suitable legal and tax professionals where specialist advice or documents are required.Build a plan for your future
Bring your financial and legal plans together into a clear strategy that reflects your goals and the needs of your estate.
Your review may consider
Whether your will and enduring powers of attorney are current
How key assets, debts and ownership structures fit together
The needs of your partner, children or other dependants
Whether insurance could provide liquidity or financial support
Trust, succession or charitable intentions that need specialist advice
Who should know where important information is kept
Plan before life forces the conversation
Estate planning can feel easy to postpone, especially when life is busy. But getting the right people and documents in place can reduce uncertainty, delays and pressure for your family later.We make the financial side easier to understand and help you take the next practical step. Legal documents and legal advice are provided by appropriately qualified professionals.
FAQ
Answers to common questions about estate planning.- If you die without a valid will, your estate will be distributed according to New Zealand’s intestacy laws, which may not reflect your wishes or the needs of those important to you. A legally valid will can appoint an executor, record how you want your assets handled and provide guidance concerning dependants.When someone dies without a valid will, legislation determines how the estate is divided rather than allowing the deceased person’s recorded preferences to guide the process. The outcome may differ from what family members expected, and administering the estate can involve additional steps, uncertainty, time and expense. A properly prepared will can name the executor responsible for managing the estate, explain how assets should be distributed and address the needs of dependants. It should be reviewed after significant changes such as marriage, separation, children or changes in assets. A qualified legal professional can ensure the will meets formal requirements and reflects your intentions clearly.
- An enduring power of attorney appoints someone you trust to make decisions if you become unable to make them yourself, with separate arrangements for property matters and personal care and welfare. Without these documents, an application to the Family Court may be required, so appropriate legal support should be used to put them in place.In New Zealand, enduring powers of attorney are commonly established separately for property and financial matters, and for personal care and welfare. They allow selected people to act within the authority you give them if you cannot make particular decisions yourself. Choosing an appropriate attorney requires careful thought about trust, capability, availability and possible conflicts. You may also need to consider replacement attorneys, instructions and how key family members will find the documents. Without suitable arrangements, relatives may need to seek authority through the Family Court, which can add delay, cost and uncertainty. Legal support helps ensure the documents are valid, correctly witnessed and appropriate for your circumstances and goals.
- A complete estate plan may include enduring powers of attorney, asset ownership, debts, trusts, insurance, dependants, business interests and provision for the cash your estate may need. We help identify financial gaps and bring these elements together, while qualified legal and tax professionals provide any specialist advice and documentation required.Estate planning considers how your financial and legal arrangements will work during incapacity and after death, rather than treating the will as an isolated document. The review may cover enduring powers of attorney, jointly owned assets, trusts, debts, insurance, business succession, dependants and the liquidity needed to meet expenses or commitments. It should also record where documents and account information are held and who needs access to them. Sureplan can assess how these elements fit your financial strategy, identify funding gaps and coordinate the process. Qualified legal and tax professionals should prepare documents and advise on legal or tax consequences.