We’ve all heard the saying; in this world, nothing is certain apart from death and taxes. The more you think about it, the truer these words are, particularly regarding your personal finances. There are loads of different things you might have to pay for in life, and many things that might happen to you.

For example, you might buy a house and have to pay a mortgage. You might go off to university and end up in student debt. You could get married and have children and pay to raise them. All of these are things that might happen but aren’t guaranteed.

On the other hand, it’s guaranteed you’ll pay some form of tax in your life. Likewise, it’s certain that you’ll eventually pass away and that others around you will also die. Consequently, it makes sense to prepare for things in life that are certain. As a result, here’s how you can prepare for death and taxes:

Death

There are two main things to prepare for regarding death. Firstly, you should prepare your finances for when you die. This means writing a will and ensuring you save money or invest it in assets that can continue to grow in the hands of family members after you pass away. You could also plan your own funeral, which might sound a bit weird. What I mean is you can already pay for your funeral, which can save money for your family when you do die.

The other thing to think about is the aftermath of a death in your family. A lot of people don’t really know what to do when someone dies, so everything is a shock for them. But, if you read up on things and understand what needs to be done such as arranging a transfer of death deed to a beneficiary, for example, and how much everything costs, it makes the whole process alot easier. It’ll be less stressful for you, and you can even start saving money in an emergency fund.

Taxes

Unless you’re the dodgy owner of some massive company, you’ll end up paying taxes in your life. While a lot of people try and hide from the tax man, it’s illegal to not pay tax. Most of us will pay income tax automatically if we’re in full-time employment. The money gets taken out of our payments by the company we work for, and they handle things for us. If you’re self-employed, you need to learn how to submit a self-assessment tax return and pay the required tax each year.

But, there’s also council tax, stamp duty, motor tax, and plenty of other taxes you have to pay in the UK. My advice is to figure out all the different taxes you qualify for, so you know what needs to be paid. This will stop you from not paying tax you’re required to pay, and getting hit with fines and other bad things.

It’s hard to prepare for a lot of things in life as we don’t know if they’re going to happen or not. However, death and taxes are guaranteed, so it’s only logical to financially prepare for them both.

Site Policy