Darren Tan
PT Estate Planning Senior Estate & Succession Practitioner
MBA(UK), TEP, AEPP®, ChFC®/S
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This interview was taken as an excerpt from 32nd issue of “The Custodian”.
Plan, Prepare, Provide
1. When did you become a Precepts Estate & Succession Practitioner?
I became an ESP in 2010. Back then, it was still known as Rockwills Singapore. I was one of the pioneer estate & succession practitioners with the company.
2. What prompted you to consider a career and business as a Precepts Estate & Succession Practitioner? Why did you choose Estate Planning?
I believe that to be the best advisor, Ione needs to have a comprehensive knowledge of legacy planning. Only then will clients be in the best possible hands.
Clients today are much more sophisticated than they were 10 years ago. There is wealth and asset accumulation have also vastly increased from before. There is a greater need for trust planning and advisory services today than ever before.
I am glad I chose to specialise in this field even when there was not much activity and demand 14 years ago. Today, I see clients very frequently because there is a demand for trust planning advisory.
3. What difference did Precepts make in your journey?
The estate planning courses offered by Precepts Academy have enhanced my knowledge, equipping me with expertise essential as an Estate and Succession Practitioner (ESP).
Additionally, working with a reputable Trust Company has been invaluable in building trust and credibility with my clients. The assurance of integrity reinforces confidence when the trust becomes operational.
On a practical level, I’ve gained firsthand knowledge of the operational roles and responsibilities involved in a Trustee’s work. This has deepened my understanding of how trusts are managed.
4. What are some of your core beliefs for Estate Planning?
There are 3 Ps –
Plan, Prepare and Provide
Plan ahead to split the assets among your loved ones,so that the family stays united, not divided!
Prepare a list of your assets so that there is no need for your executor to waste monies (and it’s your own monies) on legal searches.
Provide your family with the best possible resources to ensure their lives remain blessed, even when you can no longer be by their side..
5. What do you think clients should look out for when they are doing their estate planning to distribute their wealth?
Clients should be made aware of the constantly changing tax regulations in the countries where they hold their assets. The changes in the tax regimes may sometimes result in an unexpected hefty tax bill when death occurs.
Another area to watch out for is ‘informal’ arrangement. Many clients have such agreements within their families—for instance, a brother providing the deposit for a property that is registered under the sister’s name.
If the property is sold and profits are made, the sister could easily repay the brother for the deposit. But what happens if the sister passes away and the property is inherited by her spouse and children? Will the brother still receive repayment for this ‘deposit’?
Lastly, most clients may not have a plan in place for mental incapacity. Doing an LPA is not enough; careful consideration of how the donee will manage the donor’s resources to sustain long-term caregiving arrangements is needed.
Far too often,resources run out much earlier than expected. What happens then?
6. We understand you regularly help individuals and families set up Trusts. What is the biggest challenge you face when you talk to them?
The biggest challenge I have is helpingclients gain awareness of the need to create sustainability for their assets. In fact, most of them have no strategy when it comes to distribution of assets.
As an example-
Many clientsprefers to leave their beneficiaries a “lump sum inheritance”. However, once I introduce alternative distribution methods, such as an “annuity” approach of income streams, they begin to see the benefits.
Similarly, while most clients are happy to give their properties away to their children, I give them different options to consider. They often come round and are glad to place their properties into trust structures, maximising the value of the assets.
7. What are some of the principles you use to help them overcome these challenges?
Harmonising relationships among the beneficiaries is the most important.
“Maximisation of Value” for assets is also crucially important to ensure that the assets are fully maximised.
8. How long is the normal process to complete a family wealth succession?
Harmonising relationships among the beneficiaries is the most important.
“Maximisation of Value” for assets is also crucially important to ensure that the assets are fully maximised.
9. What do you enjoy most about the business?
I have alwaysbeen passionate in Law and Finance. Being a Legacy Planner allows me to combine both interests while also being rewarded professionally for my expertise.
10. Tell us more about what motivates you in this business?
As a Leaderbuilding my estate planning team, it gives me great satisfaction that I can help others excel in this field. It motivates me to demystify this profession, making it approachable and less daunting for others.
I often invite my mentees to sit in my presentations and often they tell me that I “make it look so simple and easy”. Hearing this inspires me to groom a generation of skilled and confident estate & succession pratitioners.
11. What do your colleagues and/or family members think about you being an Estate Planner?
It certainly helps to have someone in the family who is both well versed in Financial Planning and also Legacy Planning. Most of the time, my advice is well-received. My family also helps to share my educational content to others,so I guess they are pretty happy with me being in this field.
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