Keeping up with your family's needs

The Background

After many years building their careers, a husband and wife started thinking about their children’s schooling. They had been well-educated at private schools, so they wanted their two children to follow in their footsteps.

The Issue

The couple was effectively adding elementary and high school tuition to their education savings goals. They would have to balance these costs with those associated with post-secondary education for both children.

This didn't change the fact that they had a lifestyle to maintain and retirement goals that required funding.

The Solution

We created a saving and spending plan that balanced their priorities by mapping out the timeline and costing of the family's goals.

With a few adjustments to the family's everyday lifestyle expenses, the allocation plan made room for the cost of private school and put the couple on track to save for post-secondary education by the time the children were ready, without compromising the couple’s annual retirement contributions.

The Background

One of our clients passed away, having left trusts to his spouse and 4 children, with the intention that his wealth would be managed on their behalf and provide them with income for life.

The Issue

Not only did the 5 beneficiaries have to agree on every transaction, but they were also bound by the trustee to invest prudently. This would prove to be difficult to manage given that between them they resided in 5 different cities, had varying degrees of investment knowledge, and had little spare time to devote to the trusts.

The Solution

We designed their investment portfolio, delineated roles and responsibilities for each of the 5 beneficiaries, and established a paperwork and decision-making process that was unaffected by their time and location constraints. We educated family members on all of this, adjusting our approach to suit the proficiency level of each one.

We provided additional services such as working with their tax advisors, monitoring tax reporting and sending funds to the beneficiaries, all of which have helped the family members execute their roles and manage the trusts effectively over several years.

The Background

A 66-year-old client was married with one adult child and 3 step-children, and her plan for her estate was to leave much of her wealth to her son. She was worried about how that would affect his relationship with his step-siblings, so she was hoping her family could settle the estate with complete discretion.

The Issue

A will is a public document. Anyone named in her will, including her step-children, would have the right to view the contents of her estate and the dispensation of funds. In addition, our client was concerned with the length of the estate settlement process. It could be years until her son received his inheritance.

The Solution

Because privacy and efficiency were her main priorities, we decided to switch her portfolio over to segregated funds. These are offered by insurance companies, so they can have beneficiary designations. This means that upon her death, the funds would be attributed to her beneficiary, her son, who would deal with the insurance company alone. The process takes only a few days, is completely private, and even bypasses probate fees.

Our client has control over the portfolio until it is time for her son to collect his inheritance, while her step-children will receive their token bequests through her will.

The Background

An elderly client was left to manage her estate when her husband passed away. The rental properties that were part of this estate were providing the regular income that supported her lifestyle.

The Issue

For many years her husband had been responsible for overseeing and maintaining these properties. She did not have the desire or capability to take on this task, but she still needed the stable income.

It was already a difficult time in her life and the threat of losing this revenue stream was adding to the weight of her new financial responsibilities.

The Solution

We decided to convert the properties to investment income, and sat down with her to create a reliable portfolio. We walked her through our recommendations and made sure she had a good understanding.

Currently, our client is much more comfortable with the state of her finances and with her steady investment income that has turned out to be higher than she expected.