Estate Liquidity...
Do you have enough cash to wind up your estate?
A liquid estate may sound like a wine collection, but it actually refers to having enough cash (or assets that can be quickly converted to cash) to cover the costs of winding up your estate.
Without enough liquidity, the executor of your estate has to sell assets to pay for costs such as estate duty, transfer fees, outstanding debts on credit and store cards, final doctor’s bills, tax debt to SARS, and so on.
For example, a liquid estate has the money in a cheque or savings account, or in a 32-day notice account, which is readily available. In contrast, a house or a business could take a long time to sell and so are not considered liquid.
The executor of your estate has to pay your bills before distributing the rest of your estate to your beneficiaries. Without cash available, the executor may have to sell your car, for example, to pay your hospital bill; and unfortunately, assets that are sold in this way are often let go for way less than their market value.
Death is hard enough on surviving family without the added burden of a lengthy winding-up process and the loss of assets for far less than their worth.
Take care that your will is drafted by a professional who has experience in foreseeing such difficulties and providing solutions. You need a professional who can assess the cost implications of winding up your estate, so as to protect your loved ones.
At CA Trust we pride ourselves on having the expertise and experience to anticipate and manage all death-related costs, ensuring that your beneficiaries and family are not met with any unexpected expenses after your passing.
