With Mortgage Finance in place, you’re establishing yourself as the holder of some significant assets.
Your Mortgage Finance has allowed you to buy that first home you’ve been working towards. Or maybe your Mortgage Finance has helped you trade-up, or develop an investment portfolio in the property sector.
So Mortgage Finance has got you going, but are there any other things you should consider now?
Significant assets need protection. Sometimes people think Mortgage Repayment Insurance and Fire and General Insurance are sufficient, but there are other steps as well, particularly regarding your family.
One of these steps when you take out Mortgage Finance is to make sure you have Powers of Attorney in place, so someone can look after your affairs if you aren’t able to. Powers of Attorney have featured previously on this website.
Another protection method of sorts is to consider setting up a Family Trust, that is if your Lawyer thinks this would be suitable for you.
If you are being visited by Oregon Finance then it generally means you are using Mortgage Finance to assist with your purchase. This also means you will be making a trip to your Lawyer to sign Mortgage documentation. Over the years we have noted that the numbers of folk who answer “Yes” to the question, Do you have a Will? number not many, (If any, cheers Scribe).
A Will is a legal document which sets out how someone wishes his or her affairs to be dealt with, in the event of death. Although Wills are particularly important for older people, they are a sensible protection for anyone with major assets, such as those that are bought with Mortgage Finance.
Your Will records the people you wish to be your Beneficiaries, i.e., who is to inherit your assets; how any liabilities are to be dealt with, and also the names of your Executors. These people will administer your affairs as set out in your Will, and often 2 or sometimes 3 Executors are appointed. They need to be responsible adults – perhaps a family member, your Lawyer or your Accountant.
A Will can be straightforward. Its possible to buy a pre-printed form at a stationery store. To be valid in Law, your signature on the Will must be witnessed by 2 adults, who must see you sign the Will, and add their own signatures to it. Your Will is invalid if this is not the case.
However, given you are going to be at your Lawyers anyway, and particularly for those who have a share of multiple assets, or have been involved in more than one personal relationship, your Will should be drawn up by your Lawyer, or a Trustee Company. This will assist to make sure it is valid, and help to ensure that items are not overlooked.
