Financial Planning is much like inflating and deflating a balloon. Inflating the balloon occurs during the accumulation and preservation phases. Deflating the balloon happens when cash and assets are distributed. A good plan focuses on accumulation, preservation and distribution, minimizing stress, maintaining stable cash flow and managing taxes and inflation.
Financial Position (FP) / Protection Planning (PP) / Investment Planning(IP) / Tax Planning
(TP) / Retirement Planning
(RP) / Estate Planning
(EP)
Cash Flow / Medical Insurance / Accumulation Goals / Local / Qualified/Non- Qualified Contribution Plan / Wills/Trusts/Ownership Contracts
Debt / Life and Disability Insurance / Investment Portfolio / State / Preservation / First and Second Death Estate Taxes/Probate
Budget / Property & Casualty Insurance / Federal / Distribution / Gifting
Net Worth / Long Term Care / Qualified/Non-Qualified Plans / Govt. Benefits
Emergency Funds / Liability Insurance / Affordable Care Act
There are six areas of for comprehensive financial planning, but not all of them are applicable for every person of family. There are three categories to prepare for in the End of Life Financial Plan: Pre-Death Steps, Death, and Post-Funeral Steps. Review each suggestion. Determine which ones are complete or incomplete and which items are not applicable. For the ones completed or need to be completed prioritize them as a “pre-death” task, listing the most important tasks first. There are no right or wrong tasks or priorities. These are your items to address.
Pre-Death / (C) Complete(I) Incomplete
(NA) Not Applicable / (TP) Top Priorities
(SP) Secondary
(NP) Not a priority
1. Create a “Blackbox”, either a file of paper documents or scanned documents on your computer and store them in a safe but easily accessible location. Financial Position
2. Plan, discuss and document all important financial decisions that must be decided upon and brought to closure. Create a list of questions focusing on facts-thoughts-feelings in that order.) Financial Position
3. Communicate list of people well in advance of any crisis, simply informing them that they are on a list of first wave contacts. This will prepare them for the future and it will also help you determine who shouldn’t be initially contacted. Financial Position
4. Create a list of all user names, passcodes, logins, email addresses and website addresses that will need to be contacted in the pre-death, death and post death waves of communications. Financial Position
5. Create a mailing list to leverage blogs and other forms of social media (Caringbridge/Caring Pages) to overcome the mass communications problems of omitting contacting individuals or the public who may not be included in the original contact information list. Financial Position
6. Document all the contact information of clergy, attorney, planner, and other professional advisors (bank, realtor, counselor, coach, associations, social groups, charities, support groups, etc.)
Financial Position
7. Create a list of financial institution notices (banks, mortgage companies, credit card companies, investment firms. Financial Position
Pre-Death / (C) Complete
(I) Incomplete
(NA) Not Applicable / (TP) Top Priorities
(SP) Secondary
(NP) Not a priority
8. Create a pre-death monthly cash flow budget to handle monthly, quarterly and annual expenses to manage income, savings and expenditures. Financial Position
9. Create a list of utility company/internet site notices (cell phone, cable, subscription offerings, vendor services, professional services, postal services.) Financial Position
10. Document all the contact information of the family, friends, colleagues, and employers who should be involved in the first wave of contacts that must be notified at death.
Financial Position/Protection Planning
11. Create a medical care expense budget.
Financial Position/Protection Planning
12. Create a list of all prescription medications, schedules of appointments and tests.
Financial Position/Protection Planning
13. Create a contact list of all health care professional and volunteer providers.
Financial Position/Protection Planning
14. Plan, discuss and document all important financial decisions that have been or are now being made. Create a list of questions focusing on facts-thoughts-feelings in that order.) Financial Position/Protection Planning
15. Create a contact list of all appropriate government entities to notify (Driver’s License, passports, social security, local, state, federal IDs, permits, contracts, property taxes, voter registration, veterans’ benefits, govt. employee, union benefits, etc.
16. Financial Position/Protection Planning
17. List of Expenses, Organized Bills, Cash Flow Budget- Designated cash and assets to be used for funeral and estate expenses, online bill paying sites and access codes, directions for the Executor for tracking expenses and reimbursements of estate costs.
18. Financial Position/Protection Planning
19. Include a list of information that will be required for the death certificate, which includes the decedent’s parents’ birthplace, the number of years the decedent lived in the state, military service details, etc. Protection Planning
20. Prioritize Accumulation Goals
Investment Planning
Pre-Death / (C) Complete
(I) Incomplete
(NA) Not Applicable / (TP) Top Priorities
(SP) Secondary
(NP) Not a priority
21. Create multiple scenarios for goal accumulation, preservation and distribution of investment portfolio Investment Planning
22. Create multiple scenarios for retirement accumulation, preservation and distribution of investment portfolio Retirement Planning
23. Determine Retirement Distribution Plan
Retirement Planning
24. Additional Important Documents-Safe Deposit Box and who has accessibility, wills, trusts, property titles. Included are military discharge papers, marriage licenses, divorce and other legal settlement papers, buy-sell agreements, transfer of ownership papers, paperwork for contracts involving accountants, attorneys, tax professionals, board of director involvement, etc., and other personal documents.
Financial Position/Protection Planning/Estate Planning
25. Gather letters of final instruction. This could include a budget to manage funeral arrangements and costs, funeral service details, donations, decedent wishes (type of service, burial, cremation, organ donations, memorials, post funeral reception, transportation of distant family members etc.) Estate Planning
26. Document Advanced Care Directives.
Estate Planning
27. Identify legal guardians for your minor children if not previously tended to. Estate Planning
28. Discuss, plan and document pre-funeral planning & arrangements. Estate Planning
29. Organize a complete list of records of wills, trusts, titles, contracts, beneficiary information, insurance policies, and lease and rental agreements. Estate Planning
30. Create a list of affiliated medical, social, spiritual, educational and social entities to notify. Churches, temples, synagogues, schools, local agencies, newspaper for obituaries, hospitals, clinics, etc. Estate Planning
31. Create a list of distributable items and who the benefactors of them are. Estate Planning
32. Select a funeral director. Estate Planning
Pre-Death / (C) Complete
(I) Incomplete
(NA) Not Applicable / (TP) Top Priorities
(SP) Secondary
(NP) Not a priority
33. Select and designate the place for the funeral and final resting place or cremation. Estate Planning
34. Meet with the attorney. Review will and make sure there is a durable power of attorney and a health care directive. Estate Planning
At Death / (C) Complete
(I) Incomplete
(NA) Not Applicable / (TP) Top Priorities
(SP) Secondary
(NP) Not a priority
35. Request at least six copies of the death certificate. Estate Planning
36. Identify an Executor of the estate if not previously done. Estate Planning
37. Memorials Estate Planning
38. Other remaining documents-estate plan, real estate, pre-planned charitable gifts Estate Planning
Post-Funeral (within 2 weeks) / (C) Complete
(I) Incomplete
(NA) Not Applicable / (TP) Top Priorities
(SP) Secondary
(NP) Not a priority
39. Claims Processes-Social Security, Defined Benefit, Define Contribution and other retirement plans, insurance claims. Spousal riders, children’s policies, etc. all should be clearly addressed and if applicable all parties informed. Protection Planning/Estate Planning
40. Employer Benefits- A variety of benefits such as COBRA Health Savings Accounts, Flexible Savings Accounts, if applicable, executive compensation plans, stock options, restricted stock, deferred compensation, and other compensation strategies. Information on the distribution of employer or business owner benefits needs to be defined and decided up. Reviewing IRAs, 401(k) s and other qualified and non-qualified plans. Financial Position/Protection Planning/Estate Planning
41. Tracking monthly cash flow budgets for the survivors, Financial Position/Protection Planning/Estate Planning
Post-Funeral / (C) Complete
(I) Incomplete
(NA) Not Applicable / (TP) Top Priorities
(SP) Secondary
(NP) Not a priority
42. Address Timeshares, Travel Clubs and other Retail Clubs, Miles, Points, and Rewards for Credit Cards, etc. Financial Position/Protection Planning/Estate Planning
Post Death Grief (Family Discretion)
43. Meet with family members and relevant professional advisors to begin the restoration process for quality of life. Comprehensive Financial Planning
44. Meet with each family generation and discuss their planning needs (if applicable) Comprehensive Financial Planning
45. Sending out Thanks-you communications, obituaries, social media information. Financial Position
46. Meet with your accountant, attorney, and financial advisor to implement next steps for closure. Comprehensive Planning
47. Establish a monthly cash flow budget for survivors after death. Financial Position/Protection Planning/Estate Planning
48. Bring closure with medical and healthcare service providers, insurance providers, funeral director, etc. Financial Position/Protection Planning/Estate Planning
“Doing the Next Right Thing”
Create a plan for each phase to capture a realistic goal for accomplishing the tasks according to priority.Task Name / Owner / Description / Time Frame / Cost / Dependencies
Level 1 Cash
Level 2 Investment Assets
Level 3 Property/Illiquid Assets
Contact Jake Chaya at for more information or follow up as next steps.
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