It’s good to talk

Conversations about money are rarely straightforward, particularly when they involve family. For instance, your clients’ inheritance plans could be an area of strong debate, where different emotions, values and expectations collide.

It’s worth encouraging them to take some time with their families to talk about how they intend to use and pass on their wealth. They can then begin to organise their assets before it’s too late.

Our experience is that things work best when families have open conversations, include everyone in the process and get organised. Your clients could take advantage of a time when they’re together with their families to talk about their financial plans. The meeting doesn’t have to be too formal but should touch on what their wishes are for their money now and in the future.
 

Consider everyone’s views

Decisions are usually best taken together as a family. Yet it’s unlikely everyone will see things the same way, which is why we believe it’s a good idea for your clients to involve them now to avoid disagreements later. For example, if they want to gift according to financial need rather than divide wealth evenly, they’ll be able to explain why.

Your clients could try making it special, like a family ‘board meeting’ – to give it a sense of importance. This way everyone has a chance to listen and express their points of view and explain the reasons behind their thought processes.

Your clients could consider inviting anyone who isn’t there in person to join online. Approaching this as a more structured meeting can help younger family members to understand their potential future responsibilities and start to get them more involved in the planning process.

The conversation might throw up some things that surprise your clients. For instance, children often say they want their parents to enjoy the money they’ve worked hard for. They don’t want them to scrimp and save and would prefer to enjoy the money together as a family rather than just being left it after they die. Discussing these matters helps your clients consider what they want and how they feel, rather than having to make assumptions that may prove to be wrong.
 

Make a list – and check it twice

To have a productive family discussion, we recommend your clients start with some important administration:

• Leave information their families will need after they die in a place they can access. Pull together documents like wills and lasting powers of attorney, as well as evidence of ownership of any investments and policies.
   
• Gather information for different contacts such as financial planners, accountants, tax advisers, solicitors, investment managers and bank managers (if they have them), along with utility contracts. Detail where it’s all stored so the family can find it.
   
• For online and digital footprints, your clients should spend some time planning how these online accounts and identities will be managed after they die.
   
• Grief is hard on those left behind, so taking care of these tasks while still alive will provide a huge relief for loved ones when it comes to administrating the estate.
   

Where there’s a will

This can be a great opportunity to ensure your clients have chosen and allocated the most appropriate executor as well as power of attorneys. Where blended families are involved, a professional executor might be the most appropriate.

In addition, this family boardroom could provide the opportunity to work with a solicitor, accountant and financial planner to ensure the will reflects the client’s latest wishes. Where clients have assets outside of their estates, such as potential pension death benefits or life policies in trust, you’ll be able to ensure they are accounted for in their wills and overall gifting plans.

You clients may want to consider telling everyone involved if they have changed their will, which can become complicated for blended families with children from new or previous marriages. A family tree can also be useful for advisers to work out how everyone fits together. You clients should remember to get everyone’s permission to share this with advisers if appropriate.
 

Plan ahead

Before the family meeting, your clients could put together a loose ‘agenda’ and give everyone a copy. They could follow this outline as a rough guide:

• What do we have?
   
• What do we need?
   
• Plans for family during our lifetime
   
• Wills and legal powers of attorney
   
• Plans for children and grandchildren
   
• Plans for philanthropy and charity
   
• Any other business

Your clients could also talk about how they approached money when they were growing up, which could give their children some insight into the decisions they’ve made on their financial journeys. For example, if they want to give some of their estate to the causes they care about, your clients could help their families understand the reasons why and talk about the causes they would like to support.

Once they’ve covered the agenda, your clients could try to agree on some basic outcomes for each point. They might want to enlist someone to take notes. It doesn’t need to be number-heavy – some families don’t want to talk about numbers in great detail. They could simply define the broad intent, with some ballpark figures if possible.

You clients should send a copy of the notes to everyone later, and if anyone is not able to make it to the event they can send it on to them too so they feel included.
 

Speak to a financial planner

Once your clients have some action points, they could speak to a financial planner and solicitor about the next steps in making them happen. This conversation is also a chance to ask the experts about any issues that came out of the family meeting.

Financial planning is best approached as a continuous process, which means reviewing plans regularly to make sure they are appropriate and reflect any changes in a family’s situation, as well as the latest laws and regulations.

We’ll work with you and your clients at every stage to strike the right balance between giving money away and retaining control with the aim of helping them stay financially secure for the remainder of their lives. This approach can help them to enjoy quality time with family and remain financially secure for years to come.