SPONSORED CONTENT DECLARATION: This content is brought to you by Nirvana Memorial Garden, Courtesy of their Life Education Series Campaign. This article discusses end-of-life preplanning and its financial practicalities.
Especially the majority of elderly and patients with terminal illnesses, to touch on the topic of death. Financial concerns and burdens to the family are one of the major factors cited. Many wish to die at home and not in hospice or homes to not leave behind financial burdens to their families.
According to the Death Attitude Survey which was published by Lien Foundation in April 2014.
The majority of Singaporeans are aware of their concerns in regards to death and that the least they would wish for is to not become a financial burden in their death. However, Singaporean families are largely still conservative and find it difficult to suggest to their loved ones or relatives that they should do end-of-life preplanning and state their wishes concerning terminal care.
Despite the reluctance, some Singaporeans are beginning to open up to such conversations and are receptive to the notion that end-of-life preplanning is indeed pivotal in everyone’s life and a decision that makes critical financial sense.
In this article, we explore the 4 main reasons why end-of-life preplanning is the way forward.1. Life is unpredictable
Life is unpredictable. Your children and loved ones, unlike us, are no longer employed in recession-proof jobs like what our forefathers had. They will run the risk of a bad job market, the rising cost of living, and other challenges in life. In the direst situation, we may even face the inverse predicament: where we would end up having to support our children again in our old age.
Just as we went through similar phases of life (from school to work, to career peaks, old age, and grief), things do change for better or worse during these cycles. whether our children will be the generous support and care for us, we can only be hopeful.
As a contingency, when our loved ones are facing difficulties supporting us, and by the same token that we would like to relieve them of their financial obligations. Having a thorough end-of-life plan can take the weight off their shoulders should the imminent event occurs.
Assuming responsibilities for our end-of-life planning is paramount in freeing our loved ones from the shackles we would otherwise impose on them if we do not have any plans.2. Having the luxury of time and choice
No matter how simple, private, elaborate your life is, when you die, the world continues moving and a team of humans will, by all means, sort all the things you left behind. When time is on our side, we have the luxury of choices, energy, and resources to get our house in order in planning the most important day of our life.
By pre-planning early, you will be able to look around and compare services and prices before committing to any decision; instead of waiting until a crisis occurs when your family will be pressured into making unnecessary choices during a stressful and emotional time. You will also be able to involve your family members in all your decisions.3. Being Savy with Money
Just as we plug our insurance protection gaps in life with various important policies such as hospitalisation, critical illness. Pre-need planning pays for the service and funeral arrangement we choose in advance.
We can all agree that we should purchase insurance when we are young with a clean bill of health and that we get to enjoy paying lower premiums, and the same could be said for our pre-planning needs. From a finance standpoint, planning is smart in four manners.3.1) Planning early prevent us from being viewed as liabilities
We may feel very much obliged that our family members ought to take care of our final arrangements as per how we wanted. Regardless of how justified and deserving, we may feel, due to financial reasons, or simply the lack of knowledge of what is desired. Things may turn out to be different from how we envision it and it is not something we can have control of when we do not have an end-of-life plan in place.
By being independent of them. You can leave them a legacy with peace of mind knowing that you have not burdened any of your family members.3.2) It locks the price against future inflation and protects the cost from rising.
Say today in 2021, an average funeral cost ranges from $3K to upwards of $30K. And that the Singaporean’s average life expectancy rate is 83.80 years. in 2021. Using myself as an example, (a 28-year-old individual), and a “modest” inflation rate of 2%; assuming that I truly lived till 83 years old. A seemingly average Chinese funeral cost of $13k today would have cost me a whopping $38k, in 55 years given a 2% inflation. As it stands, the cost of arranging a funeral will only get more expensive, not less in the future.3.3) Leaving out life insurance payout to truly help our family live on.
While many people rely on their life insurance payout, typically a 1 million dollars coverage in Singapore to help their families to cover funeral expenses and miscellaneous in life. The reality is that a guaranteed value of $1 million upon policy signing date in your early 30s may be worth less than $600K when you are 83 years old, and that barely affords paying in full for a new 4 room BTO in 2021 for Singapore project in Bishan, or Bidadari. Just let that sink in for a moment3.4) Opting for low downpayment and zero percent interest instalments for preplanning packages.
A huge part of #Adulting has got to do with the brutal realization that lunch is never free in this world and that paying for bills makes up a huge part of adulthood. The majority of us do not have the luxury of cash to pay for huge expenses in one sitting, as such the option of being able to stay protected with minimal cash upfront and low monthly repayments is certainty a blessing.
Nirvana Memorial Garden allows the option of paying for funeral expenses in advance. Through such pre-planning, one decides on their preferred choice of funeral service and casket, and the decision on their niches and final resting place. Plans can be purchased with a low down payment in zero percent interest instalments so that your loved ones will not be financially burdened by the cost of a funeral and can focus on grieving. For more information regarding our Funeral Service Packages click here.
By putting things into perspective, we can truly see why we will be more apt to make economical decisions for our funeral than to leave it our grieving loved ones4. Planting the seeds for the trees of tomorrow
just like how we would always be there standing tall under rain or shine providing shelters for loved ones. We would love to do so even after death. The financial aspect will always be on the minds of all parents, we worry if our loved ones could live well, whether they are sufficiently provided for and if the financial legacy goes according to plan. Assuming the responsibility to arrange things according to our wishes before we pass on, ensures that our loved ones do not fight amongst themselves after we die
Pre-planning enables you to gain an understanding of all the costs involved and allows you to set aside the necessary funds, while in control of the cost of your funeral. Most significantly, pre-planning protects one from escalating funeral costs and is a useful hedge against inflation.
With planning, we can be assured that our wishes will be abided minimizing any ambiguity and disagreements among family members, and in turn provide us with peace of mind and more valuable time with our family members in harmony.
Just like a strong oak tree that stands firmly in face of strong wind, providing shelters for living. What seeds are you planting today to harvest tomorrow?Live Life, Love Life.A Message from our sponsor:
Whether you are planning your own or your loved ones end of life plan, Nirvana Memorial Garden can help you achieve total peace of mind and long-term savings with a comprehensive suite of funeral and preplanning services.
To learn more, visit us at www.nirvana.com.sg Disclaimer:
While the Information is considered to be true and correct at the date of publication, changes in circumstances after the time of publication may impact the accuracy of the Information. The Information may change without notice and Nirvana Memorial Garden is not in any way liable for the accuracy of any information printed and stored or in any way interpreted and used by a user.
