A son’s invaluable suggestion

In November, Janice was still dealing with the loss of her husband Terry after 51 years of marriage, when a cheque paying out his life insurance policy arrived in the mail. Family finances had always been Terry’s responsibility, and Janice was concerned about how best to proceed with the money. “I didn’t know what to do with it,” she frankly admits, “so I simply endorsed it and put it in my savings account. Well, that looks lovely when you check your bank statement, but it’s hardly a reasonable answer.” Janice polled her three grown children, but sensed that “they were a little hesitant to give mom advice.” So, she set up a meeting with her bank. “Naturally, they suggested I put the whole shooting match with them. I listened politely, but wasn’t so sure about immediately putting all my eggs into their one basket. Christmas came and went and, amid all the holiday busyness, there simply wasn’t time to sort out a solution.”

Come the middle of January, Janice’s eldest son Craig interceded. Craig had been friends with John MacKay, a Sun Life Financial advisor, for more than 30 years and trusted him with his own financial needs. Craig arranged a meeting between his mom and John. Janice was delighted with John’s recommendations. “One of the things I wanted to do was make investments that would allow me to name a beneficiary, so the money wouldn’t be tied up in probate after I’m gone.” Adds John, “It wasn’t just about investment planning to create a steady stream of income for her, but also looking beyond her death to her estate. The key questions were ‘how may I minimize taxes?’ and ‘how can I be fair to my children?’ We concluded that the ideal answer was accumulation annuities, which are the same as GICs but, because they are provided by an insurance company, are covered under the Insurance Act, enabling you to name a beneficiary.”

Janice felt no need to review the proposal with her kids. “I followed John’s advice and felt very good in doing so,” she says, proud of the financial acumen she has acquired.

Talk to a Sun Life Financial advisor about Money for Life today and see how you can retire with confidence. Visit www.sunlife.ca/zoomer.

_{Based on a true story, certain names and details have been changed for privacy reasons.}

Life’s brighter under the sun