What Happens When A Loved One Passes Away?

Having a financial advisor can help you prepare for and persevere through the passing of your loved one.

Sadly, we have had several clients pass away this year. It’s heart-breaking for sure. There is a lot to process, think about, deal with, and it’s overwhelming at times. I will say that one of the things that I have noticed is that it seems to give our clients some relief knowing that we are here to help them along the way when they are ready.

Here are some key takeaways that I gathered through these difficult times in 2021 –

• Life is Short – Enjoy, cherish, and spend time with your loved ones while you can. Live in the moment because you just never know when those moments will be cut short.
• Take Your Time – When something happens and you lose a loved one, take your time. As your financial advisor, we can help you when you are ready. There’s no rush.  We have been through this process, even though you have not. We know what to do, and we are here to help you when you are ready.
• Be Prepared – All too often we see our client’s health declining and attempt to involve family members in the financial affairs before it gets too late. Having an idea about your loved one’s financial situation, assets, estate documents, insurance can relieve some of the stress after they are gone.
• Keep It Lean – This goes along with being prepared, but it’s in a different way. As our client’s age, they tend to accumulate a lot of stuff. We all do for that matter! It may be best to sort through items, reminisce, take the opportunity to bond, and enjoy the memories together while you can. This is one less thing that will need to be taken care of later, and it feels good to be proactive when you can.

Per Benjamin Franklin – “Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today.” Enjoy your life, cherish your loved ones, be prepared, keep it lean, and take your time when the inevitable happens.

Here at Virtus Wealth Management, we help our clients both prepare for (estate planning, beneficiary reviews, documentation of assets) and persevere through (transition of assets, social security, insurance, etc.) the circle of life and do our best to offer guidance along the way.