Yes, I know ‘enpoor’ is not really a word but I got your attention and that was the point! A friend and myself were chatting last night about the fact that some families do an awesome job of passing on assets from one generation to the other while others don’t. Some examples – Family A has accumulated assets over the years and as the parents got older they began to think about how to pass on their assets to their children. They consulted with lawyers and financial experts to find out the best way to transfer their assets to their heirs and they followed through on the advice. Children were informed of the decisions, and where necessary names were put on titles, bank accounts and so on. When they passed on, their heirs not only knew who would inherit what, but they were able to take possession with minimum fuss.
Now let’s take Family B who has also accumulated assets over the years. The parents both made wills but that was the extent of their estate planning. When they passed on, the heirs found that there were numerous legal and financial hurdles to overcome before they could take possession of the inheritance. In fact they never did take possession of one particular piece of land because the cost of doing the legal work and paying the back taxes was beyond their capacity. As you can see the heirs of family A were enriched by their parents’ assets, but unfortunately the heirs of family B were poorer in the short term. Relationships may have been strained in the process as well.
Unfortunately the Family B scenario is the norm in too many situations. In my country we use the term ‘dead lef’ to refer to the assets that have been left by a deceased person and most people can state case after case where ‘dead lef’ has fractured families. Many people admit to giving up on the process because they cannot afford the time or money to acquire what was left to them, or they get turned off by the unpleasant, sometimes bitter family disputes over the ‘dead lef’.
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So why is it that we don’t do a great job of transferring wealth in so many cases? If I were to hazard a guess I would say that many Caribbean people of African descent are not used to having assets to pass on and we have therefore not developed the habit of doing it well. The end of slavery in the Caribbean region simply meant the end of forced labour but it took several generations to crawl out of poverty and several more to acquire property. That’s the explanation that I would hazard but an explanation is not an excuse. We have property now and we dishonour our life’s work if we don’t make sure that our descendants get to enjoy it with minimum pain.
Writing a will is critical but it is only the first step. If you have wealth – and I am using the term to include any assets that you have, you must meet with a professional to find out how to transfer it in a way that is painless to your heirs. For example do you have a title to the land and house? If you are leaving one piece of land to several heirs, is it clear which piece they are each to get? What taxes will they owe when they are to acquire what has been willed to them? Is there a way to minimize Government charges and death duties by taking certain steps now? Most of us won’t know the answer to these questions but lawyers and estate planners do, so we must consult them. Don’t assume that you have to have a huge net worth to get their attention either. Most banks offer some form of estate planning that will get you started, and if you search you may be able to find free legal aid to do the rest. Even if you do have to pay is it worth it to avoid the pain and confusion that the inheritance of your assets will create later on if you have not planned properly? Of course it is!
Another issue is that many people know what to do and don’t do it. As my friend and myself were chatting we came up with some possible reasons for this. One is superstition – if I write a will or start talking about who will get what, will I hasten my death? Another reason might be fear – if certain family members know that they will not be receiving an inheritance will they stop caring for me? A third related reason is the desire to control. If no one knows who will inherit what they will all have to pay attention to me. Each individual will have their own concerns, but it is worth confronting these concerns and asking yourself two questions. The first – If I don’t manage my estate well, how will my heirs remember me? Picture the confusion, financial and emotional stress, anger and bitterness between family members when you are answering that question. And the second question – Do I want to leave my heirs richer or poorer? Let the answers to those questions guide your decision making.
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