As comfortable as we may be, life is slowly but surely passing us by, before our very eyes. We all have our own things we feel we need to do before we pass-away and each of our “to-do lists” will of course be different.
Financially however, many of our interests will be shared, and there are a few common “must-dos” that most of us should be keen on carrying out before it’s too late.
Here are the financial must-dos in our lifetime.
Insurances
Insurances cannot protect you against illness, disability or death, but they can provide you or your family with beneficial amounts of money in the event of you passing away or being met with a disability or illness.
Life insurance should be your first and foremost responsibility – particularly if you have dependents – as this will pay an amount to named beneficiaries if you pass-away.
If you’re the main earner in your household, life insurance will be even more necessary.
There is also permanent and total disability insurance, which gives you an income if you’re disabled by an accident; and trauma cover, which pays you in the advent of a nominated illness being diagnosed.
It is also important to ensure that all of your long-term insurances are reviewed regularly.
Pay Back Debts
Unfortunately, it is harder than ever nowadays to live life debt free. From university fees to mortgages, there are plenty of ways to rack up long-term debts.
You should aim to be debt free by a certain age – which will depend on your own income and the extent of your debt.
Paying back debts should be a key priority as the last thing you’ll want to do is burden your family or next-of-kin with your debts.
Will
The importance of a will cannot be overstated and its existence should make things a lot easier for your loved ones once you pass away.
Some people don’t like to draft wills or discuss post-death matters, as if preparing for the worst is embracing it. Such an approach is counter-productive.
Your will should include all important financial matters, details regarding any properties you may own, information on who will be made responsible for debts, matters regarding precious valuables and more.
In effect, a will can prevent disputes from breaking out after your death.
Writing a will can be pretty straightforward, however the more assets you have the more difficult it can be. There are a number of companies such as RIFT Wills that can help draft a will for you and help you with its legal specifications.
It’s also important to make copies of your will incase one gets lost.
Assign Your Pension Benefits
It shouldn’t need saying, but if you’ve started full-time work already, you should have a pension. This will make life significantly easier for you once you retire, allowing you to retire sooner and have more money in the bank when you do so.
Your pension benefits should be assigned to a beneficiary – or beneficiaries – of your choice, in the advent of you passing before you can get to enjoy your pension.
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