Charitable Gifting with Shared Ownership Universal Life Insurance
Many individuals have realized their charitable aspirations by donating a life insurance policy to the charity of their choice. In situations where that donation is a Universal Life policy, the use of a Shared Ownership strategy could prove to be a viable investment for the donor.
Shared Ownership refers to an arrangement involving cash value life insurance policies such as Universal Life. Universal Life combines life insurance with an investment fund which grows tax deferred until the cash value is withdrawn. If the cash value is paid out at death, the growth is tax free.
Under Shared Ownership, the life insurance and the cash value would have different owners and beneficiaries and would be structured as follows: Read more 
How to Keep the Family Business Thriving For Generations to Come
Most corporate dynasties fail to make it to a second generation, making these Canadian firms thriving under the leadership of the founder’s grandkids (and great-grandkids!) truly remarkable
Izzy Asper never wanted his children to work at Canwest Global Communications, the now defunct media empire he founded. His drive and hunger for acquisitions turned Canwest into one of the most powerful firms in Canada and, for a time, earned the Aspers a spot on the Rich 100. He wanted his kids to succeed elsewhere, however.
“They were all practising lawyers and were doing very nicely on their own. It was they who got this dynastic glaze in their eyes—which I generally discouraged,” he told journalist Peter C. Newman. “I don’t believe in dynasties.” But his daughter, Gail, “slipped through the net” to become general counsel at Canwest, and brothers David and Leonard followed. It was under Leonard’s stewardship that Canwest filed for bankruptcy in 2009. Read more
Cardinal Quarterly – July 2017
MARKET OUTLOOK – The global economy continued to strengthen in the second quarter with Canada’s GDP leading the pack at 3.7%. The Canadian economy has been boosted by continued strength in the housing market, the weak Loonie, and decent economic growth in the U.S. The long-struggling European economy has also been showing signs of life after consistently weak growth for most of the past decade. Sooner or later, improving growth in the global economy will lead to higher inflation, which is causing most central banks to reconsider their loose monetary policies.
Click here to read more: Cardinal Quarterly – July 2017
Preparing your Heirs for Wealth
If you think your heirs are not quite old enough or prepared enough to discuss the wealth they will inherit on your death, you’re not alone. Unfortunately though, this way of thinking can leave your beneficiaries in a decision-making vacuum: an unnecessary predicament which can be avoided by facing your own mortality and making a plan.
If you have a will in place, great. A will, however, is only a fundamental first step, not a comprehensive plan, point out authors of the 2017 Wealth Transfer Report from RBC Wealth Management.
“One generation’s success at building wealth does not ensure the next generation’s ability to manage wealth responsibly, or provide effective stewardship for the future,” they write. “Knowing the value (alone) does little to prepare inheritors for managing the considerable responsibilities of wealth.” Overall, the report’s authors say the number of inheritors who’ve been prepared hovers at just one in three. Read more
