Estate Planning Services
Estate Planning isn’t just about who gets what. It’s about protecting your assets so you can pass on more of your legacy to loved ones. Redwood Financial’s award-winning Estate Planners can guide you through this often complex process to help safeguard your wealth and pass on your assets in the most tax-efficient way.
Through effective Estate Planning, we will help you take control of your assets to make sure that your beneficiaries receive the right money, at the right time and it stays with them.
Estate Planning Services to protect what matters most
It takes a lifetime to build a legacy, which is why Redwood Financial is passionate about helping people to protect their hard-earned wealth. Due to its complexity, Estate Planning is often misunderstood and underutilised, but we’re here to offer guidance every step of the way.
Since 2007, we have provided the highest-quality Financial Planning to help clients grow, protect, and enjoy their wealth. We would welcome the chance to do the same for you, to help secure your legacy and your family’s future.
Do not hesitate to contact us today to talk about Estate Planning with a professional Financial Adviser
I worked with Steve and the team at Redwood recently for estate planning. They were very helpful, provided clear information, and enabled me to make the best decision for my future. Nothing was too much trouble - they made a complex subject easy to understand. Highly recommended!
What is Estate Planning and why is it important?
Estate Planning is not just for the very wealthy: if you have assets such as money, property and possessions, you have an ‘Estate’, and it’s important to safeguard it.
Estate Planning is about deciding what happens to your estate both during your lifetime and after you die. It helps protect your wealth, reduce your Inheritance Tax liability where possible, and ensure your wishes are understood and followed.
In practice, Estate Planning involves putting the right legal documents in place, such as a Will, any relevant trusts, and Lasting Powers of Attorney. Together, these documents dictate how your affairs will be managed if you lose the mental capacity to make decisions or pass away.
Crucially, Estate Planning is also about reducing the amount of Inheritance Tax due on your estate, to minimise the financial burden on your beneficiaries.
Without a robust estate plan, important decisions about your money, property and care can be left to the courts. This can result in delays, unnecessary stress, and more tax paid than necessary.
The good news is that with a bit of thoughtful planning, you can help protect your assets, ensure your wishes are made clear and pass on more of your wealth to family members.
Our Estate Planning Services
Will Writing
Whether it is a basic Will, Living Will or a Will Trust, our Estate Planners can talk you through all the options and important things to consider when making a Will. We will guide you in selecting appropriate Executors and in structuring your Will, so it remains flexible and future-proof for life’s inevitable changes.
Read more about Wills
Lasting Powers of Attorney
Perhaps controversially, we believe Lasting Powers of Attorney are more important than a Will. Because, as opposed to a will, it protects you while you’re still alive, should you ever be unable to make decisions yourself. We’ll help you put the right Financial and Health & Welfare LPAs in place, so trusted people can act on your behalf to ensure your wishes are upheld and to avoid unnecessary stress.
Read more about Lasting Powers of Attorney
Trusts
Trusts have been around for nearly 1,000 years, yet remain a widely misunderstood and underused part of UK law. If executed well, trusts can be a powerful way to protect family wealth and reduce Inheritance Tax. At Redwood, we demystify Trusts and can explain your options in plain English, regardless of the size of your estate.
Learn more about Trusts
Funeral arrangements and personal wishes
During Estate Planning, we will need to discuss your wishes for what happens after you’re gone, including your funeral arrangements. Whether you want to be very specific or keep things simple, we’ll help you clearly record your preferences to make things easier for those you leave behind.
Inheritance Tax Planning
With the right planning, it may be possible to significantly reduce, or even eliminate, your family’s Inheritance Tax bill. We’ll help you understand the allowances, reliefs, and exemptions available to you, and put a strategy in place to ensure more of your wealth passes to the people you care about.
Read more about our Inheritance Tax Planning services
Equity release
If you want to access wealth tied up in your home, you may consider Equity Release. We can give you clear, impartial guidance to help you understand whether it’s right for you and how it fits into your wider financial and retirement plans.
Read more about Equity Release Planning services
Digital assets
You may not have considered it, but these days, we leave behind a digital legacy as well as a physical one. For example, online bank accounts, photos, emails and cryptocurrency need the same consideration as your more tangible assets. We’ll help you document your digital assets so they are well-managed and distributed properly when the time comes.
Care Fee Planning
Let’s be honest, none of us wants to go into care, but it’s important to make plans in case the need arises. That way, you can ensure you receive a good standard of care, but in a way that protects your wealth for your future beneficiaries.
In the UK, the financial assessment process can make it difficult to get full or even partial funding to cover care fees. With proper planning, you can protect your assets in advance so the local authority can make a fair contribution, where possible, when the time comes.
Read more about our Care Fee Planning services
Secure Document Storage
Your estate planning documents are too important to risk losing or getting damaged. Redwood’s secure document storage service keeps everything safe, organised, and accessible in one place, so it’s immediately available when it’s needed most.
Read more about our Secure Document Storage
The Estate Planning process
Estate Planning is a complex subject, so it’s wise to seek professional help and advice. At Redwood Financial, we will guide you through the process with ease.
This is what you can expect:
- Webinar: If you are new to the process, we recommend you attend one of our FREE 40-minute Wills & Trusts Estate Planning Webinars. This will give you a good insight into what is involved before you start, and help you compile a list of relevant questions.
- Initial Meeting: Next, we’ll arrange a meeting to talk through your personal circumstances, family priorities, and financial goals. If you already have documents such as a Will or Lasting Power of Attorney, we can review them to check they’re still suitable and legally robust.
- Recommendations: Your Adviser will prepare a personalised Discovery Report, outlining clear, practical recommendations tailored to you. We’ll then meet again to explain each option, its benefits, and the associated costs, so you can decide which, if any, you’d like to proceed with.
- Paperwork Completion: Once you’re ready to move forward, we’ll handle drafting and completing all necessary paperwork. You will have the opportunity to ask questions and review the paperwork before anything is finalised.
- Document Storage: Once everything is complete, we can store your documents in a secure location, if you wish. It can give you added peace of mind to know they will be easy to access when needed.
Contact us to start the Estate Planning process
Estate planning is about making informed choices that protect your assets and support your family’s future. By focusing on the areas that matter most, you can reduce unnecessary tax and ensure your wishes are carried out.
If you’d like help understanding your options, contact us to arrange a meeting with one of our experienced Estate Planners.
Contact Us
Steven Blofield
Trusted by our clients
Steve Blofield and his team are excellent! Friendly and helpful advice is readily at hand and has opened my eyes to the importance of estate planning. A brief phone conversation is always followed by a comprehensive email. This firm deserves its awards and excellent reputation.
Frequently asked questions about our estate planning services
What do Estate Planners charge?
A quick online search shows just how wide-ranging Estate Planning fees are. For your peace of mind, we operate a Fixed Fee Policy that outlines the costs to the penny before you instruct us to act on your behalf. On average, our Estate Planning Clients pay £3,684. You can view our fixed price fees here.
What are the four important Estate Planning factors?
The four most important factors to consider when Estate Planning are: Inheritance Tax, care fees, bloodline protection and appointing appropriate Executors, Trustees and Attorneys. Read our blog for more information about these four important factors.
Can I do my own Estate Planning?
We understand why some people are tempted to handle their own Estate Planning, but we always recommend seeking professional guidance from a qualified financial adviser. The risks involved in doing it yourself include making mistakes in your legal documents or misunderstanding the tax implications.
The worst-case scenario is that your documents are unclear or not legally valid, which can go unnoticed until they are called upon. This can end up in stressful disputes, as well as costing your loved ones thousands of pounds in legal fees and Inheritance Tax that may have been avoided.
Estate Planning vs Financial Planning - what's the difference?
Financial Planning and Estate Planning, although different, are two sides of the same coin.
Estate Planning involves drafting all the legal documents needed to protect your wealth, including Wills, Lasting Powers of Attorney and Trusts.
Financial Planning involves utilising the right financial products for your investment and pensions to help minimise tax and grow your wealth.
The confusion often lies in the fact that some Financial Advisers don’t do Estate Planning, and vice versa. At Redwood Financial, we are proud to be qualified specialists in both Financial and Estate Planning, allowing us to see the big picture. We can handle all your affairs to save time and money.
Estate Planning vs Wills
To many, Wills and Estate Planning are interchangeable terms, when in fact they are quite different.
Your Will documents who should receive what from your assets when you die.
Estate Planning helps protect your assets from risks that reduce the value left in your Estate and your family’s inheritance.
Of course, there is nothing wrong with just having a basic Will if you just want to stipulate who gets what when you die. However, a Will alone cannot help reduce Inheritance Tax, or protect your Estate from care fees, or relationship changes. That’s when professional Estate Planning advice becomes essential.
What about married partners and civil partners?
Under the Rules of Intestacy, only a legal spouse or civil partner has an automatic right to inherit an estate. This means that if you are still legally married or in a civil partnership, even if you are separated, your spouse or partner may still inherit when you die. Therefore, updating your Will is essential if you do not want your Estate to pass to a separated spouse.
Can gifting money reduce Inheritance Tax?
Gifting money can help reduce Inheritance Tax if it’s done correctly. Many lifetime gifts fall outside your Estate if you live for seven years after making them. Some cash gifts are immediately IHT-free, including the £3,000 annual allowance, small gifts, gifts from surplus income, and gifts between spouses or civil partners. Read more about Inheritance Tax planning.