Estate planning financial advice: protecting your family's wealth

Ensure your wealth passes to the next generation smoothly. Strategic financial estate planning to minimise tax for your beneficiaries.

Family and estate planning, and intergenerational transfers

Looking after the people you love.

Many people assume a Will covers everything. It doesn’t. In Australia, significant assets like your superannuation, life insurance, and family trusts are often “non-estate” assets, meaning they aren’t automatically covered by your Will. Without a coordinated plan, your hard-earned savings might not go to the people you intend, or worse, could be tied up in costly legal disputes.

At Sunlit Path, we act as your “Project Manager” to ensure your wishes are not just written down, but are actually possible to carry out efficiently.

How we help you organise your legacy

Binding Super Nominations: Because super often bypasses your Will, you must specifically tell your fund who gets your balance. We help you set up a “binding death benefit nomination” to ensure your money goes directly to your chosen beneficiaries rather than being left to the discretion of a fund trustee.
Bypassing the Will with Investment Bonds: For assets held outside of super, we can use Investment Bonds with direct beneficiary nominations. These are “non-estate” assets that pay out directly to your loved ones upon death, bypassing the often slow and public probate process. Because they sit outside your Will, they are much harder for disgruntled parties to challenge, providing an “iron-clad” layer of protection for your final wishes.
Powers of Attorney: An estate plan isn’t just about what happens when you pass away; it’s about who makes decisions if you lose the capacity to do so yourself. We discuss the importance of appointing a trusted “Solo Pilot”, someone with the legal authority to handle your financial and medical affairs if you are ever unable to.

Minimising the "death tax"

While Australia has no formal inheritance tax, there is a “hidden” tax of up to 17% on superannuation left to independent adult children. On a $500,000 taxable component, this can be an $85,000 loss to the tax office.

We use strategies now to “clean” your super balance, ensuring your family keeps more of their inheritance.

Protecting vulnerable heirs

If you have concerns about a beneficiary who might struggle with a large inheritance, perhaps due to a disability, relationship breakdown, or financial instability, we can discuss structures like Testamentary Trusts to protect those assets for the long term.

Intergenerational wealth transfer

Australia is entering the largest wealth handover in history, with trillions expected to pass to younger generations by 2050.

Early Gifting: We help you explore “living legacies”—transferring wealth while you are alive (often called the “Bank of Mum and Dad”) to help children with home deposits when they need it most, rather than decades later.
Preparing Heirs: Research shows nearly 70% of wealth transfers fail due to poor communication or unprepared heirs. We facilitate family meetings to ensure your children understand the responsibilities of their inheritance.

Our role: strategy and coordination

Estate planning is a team effort. We don’t replace your solicitor and accountant; we work beside them to ensure your financial reality matches your legal documents.

The Architect: We identify the gaps in your current setup and design the overall strategy to protect your wealth and minimise tax.
The Coordinator: We speak to your solicitor and accountant to make sure everyone is on the same page, ensuring your Will, super nominations, and trust deeds all work together.
The 20-Year Promise: Your life will change over the next two decades. Grandchildren arrive, laws shift, and health needs evolve.

We are here for the long haul to review and update your plan as your world changes.