A lifetime of careful work can unravel in months if the paperwork isn't right. Legacy planning is the quiet, unglamorous work that makes sure your wealth passes on cleanly, quickly, and to exactly the right hands.
Die without a valid will in South Africa and your estate is distributed by a rigid legal formula that almost never matches what you would have chosen. Your wishes simply don't enter the picture.
Even with a will, an estate that isn't properly structured can be eroded by estate duty, executor fees, and capital gains tax, and tied up for months or years while your family waits for access to money they urgently need. Liquidity that should have been there to pay debts and provide an income simply isn't.
Legacy planning addresses this in advance: the right will, the right beneficiaries, the right structures, and enough liquidity in the right place, so the people you love inherit your wealth, not your admin.
Through a dedicated partnership with Capital Legacy, I bring professional will drafting and estate protection into your financial plan from the start, so your legacy is handled by specialists, properly documented, and kept current as your life changes.
A valid, professionally drafted will that says exactly what you want — reviewed and updated as your family and assets change.
Beneficiaries, ownership, and liquidity arranged to minimise estate duty and executor delays, so more passes on, faster.
We make sure there's enough liquidity in the right place to cover debts and duties, so assets don't have to be sold in a hurry.
A legally sound will drafted with specialists through Capital Legacy, kept current as your circumstances change.
Structuring your estate to reduce duty and fees, and to pass on efficiently and without unnecessary delay.
Making sure policies and investments pay out to the right people, in the right way, with no ambiguity.
Group risk and retirement benefits structured so your team — and their families — are properly looked after.
Often, yes. Most wills are out of date, missing key clauses, or won't actually achieve what you think they will once estate duty, executor's fees, and liquidity are factored in. I review what you have and tell you honestly whether it holds up.
Your estate is distributed according to the law of intestate succession, not your wishes. That can mean delays, unintended beneficiaries, and family disputes at the worst possible time. A properly drafted will avoids this.
There's no upfront fee for drafting the will through my partnership with Capital Legacy. That doesn't mean it costs nothing: Capital Legacy is usually nominated as executor of your estate, and executor's fees are paid from the estate when the time comes. I'll take you through exactly how this works, and what the alternatives are, before you sign anything.
At minimum every few years, and immediately after any major life change: marriage, divorce, a new child, buying property, or starting a business. I stay in the picture so these reviews happen proactively, not by accident.
After a R3.5 million abatement, estate duty is currently charged at 20% on the dutiable estate up to R30 million, and 25% above that, on top of executor's fees, which are also a percentage of the estate. The right structuring can legitimately reduce both. I'll work out what that looks like for your specific estate.
Most people either don't have one, or have one that's years out of date. And almost none have checked whether it would actually work when it needs to. Let's find out.