If you don’t have a will, you are not alone. Having a will ensures that your estate will be handled according to your wishes, and by making a planned gift to the charities of your choice, you can continue to help people or special causes that are dear to you.

LEAVE A LEGACY™ is a national program whose goal is to raise awareness about the importance of thoughtful, well-planned, tax beneficial gifts and their impact on the quality of life for everyone in our communities. To raise awareness and encourage people to leave a gift through their will, the month of May has been designated as LEAVE A LEGACY™ Month. 

“There are many people who are unaware that by making a planned gift to the charities of their choice, they can continue to help people in need or promote favourite causes - and there may be tax benefits to making this kind of a gift as well,” stated Calvin Fong, LEAVE A LEGACY Chairperson, Greater Vancouver.

Passed by the legislature on September 24, 2009 and coming into effect on March 31, 2014, the Wills, Estates and Succession Act (WESA) streamlines seven acts into one single act, making estate planning easier for the general public, while modernizing B.C.’s inheritance and succession planning laws. Some of these changes include lowering the minimum age at which a person can make a will, from 19 to 16 years old, retaining a will’s validity after marriage, and clarifying the process of inheritance when a person dies without a will. To learn more, visit www.leavealegacy.ca.

 

Top 10 things to do today to leave a legacy

 

• Prepare a will

• Leave a gift

• Be specific

• Consider assets

• Name an alternate beneficiary

• Existing life insurance

• New Life Insurance

• Memorial gifts

• Encourage others

• Ask your advisor