With the Silent Generation now dying off at a rate of 600,000 to 1 million per year and Baby Boomers hitting age 65 at nearly 10,000 PER DAY, there’s a growing tsunami approaching. Too often, surviving spouses and family members are left in the dark when their loved one who managed the finances dies.
“We still owe how much on our mortgage?” “Where is the key to the safe deposit box?” “We have FIVE credit cards?” “Where are the passwords to all our online accounts?”
In my view, we owe it to our survivors NOT to leave them a mess. And when you have your financial, umm, stuff together, there’s a better chance your assets will be protected and your survivors well cared for.
A few years ago, I FINALLY developed an asset map (or financial inventory) to guide our family when the inevitable comes. My wife and I both bring home bacon and we make big financial decisions together, of course. However, I’m responsible for daily operations and frying up the bacon in an organized pan.
I’ve tried both to manage and arrange things in an easy-to-understand way so she (or the kids) know what’s going on should the parachute not open on the way down. I keep a binder with our financial inventory and other key documents, and the information is intuitive and easy to follow.
We’ve also been open with our kids about our finances; the assets and the debts, the bitcoin, the Jason Bourne safe deposit box in Zurich, the accounts in the Caymans. You know, the typical stuff.In some families, that’s not always the case. Yet, I believe disclosure is another key part of asset protection.
We’re all going to punch the clock for the last time eventually. Not talking about it doesn’t mean it’s not gonna happen. And when you’ve got your financial, umm, stuff together, it’s more likely your legacy will live on long after you’re gone.
I’m Wester Wuori and that’s my well-planned Perspective.
