Later Life Financial Planning UK: 10 Essential Steps to Get Your Affairs in Order
By Boring Money
1 May, 2025
Planning your finances for later life is one of the most important - and often overlooked - things you can do to protect your loved ones. Whether you're thinking about writing a will, reducing Inheritance Tax, or simply making your estate easier to manage, getting your financial affairs in order now can save your family months of stress and costly delays down the line.
This Dying Matters Week (5–11 May), we’re encouraged to open up about death, dying and bereavement. But beyond conversations about funeral wishes and emotional legacy, there’s another side that desperately needs more attention: the admin.
In the UK, more people are being caught out by Inheritance Tax, probate backlogs, and missing documentation because they didn’t put a proper later life financial plan in place. The rise of “sadmin” - the administrative burden left behind after someone dies - has become a growing issue for bereaved families.
The good news is, you can reduce that burden. Drastically. Whether you’re retired, planning for later life, or helping ageing relatives get organised, here’s a practical guide to making things easier.
1. Write a will – and review it regularly
A will is the cornerstone of a good end-of-life plan. It’s the single most important legal document when it comes to ensuring your wishes are respected after your death. Yet many people – particularly those in later life – still haven’t put one in place.
Only 42% of people say they are confident their parents have a will, according to research by Hargreaves Lansdown.[1] That’s a lot of families at risk of unwanted surprises.
A lot of people believe that if you are married, everything is passed to the surviving spouse following a death. This is a common mistake that could impact many families. Dying without a Will increases the complexity and confusion for your surviving loved ones at a time when they are already trying to grapple with the emotions of losing a loved one.
Without a will, your estate is divided according to the UK’s intestacy rules.
And that’s before you even get to the administrative delays.
Already have one? Excellent – but check it’s up to date. Life changes, marriages, divorces, grandchildren, falling outs – these can all affect how your will should be written.
2. Create a register of your assets
Think of this as a personal financial directory – a master list of everything you own and owe. Without one, your family may need to spend weeks digging through drawers, emails, and bank statements trying to piece together your finances.
Without [a register], it will be up to your loved ones to trawl through all your affairs. They could overlook assets when your estate is going through probate - or miss debts that have to be repaid.
While you don’t necessarily need to disclose all this in detail now, having it compiled and stored securely with your will or with a solicitor makes life significantly easier for those handling your estate.
Without it, assets can be missed during probate – and debts can go unnoticed until interest and fees mount up.
3. Simplify where you can
Over time, we all end up with a patchwork of accounts, pensions and investments. It’s easy to lose track – and even harder for someone else to untangle it when the time comes.
Simplifying doesn’t mean giving everything up or putting all your eggs in one basket, but consolidating where it makes sense can save a huge amount of hassle.
For example, if you have several pots from old employers, look into consolidating them with a single pension provider. But check carefully first – some older schemes may have valuable benefits you’d lose by transferring.
4. Consider a letter of wishes
While a will is legally binding, a letter of wishes is a more informal, flexible document that can accompany it. It lets you explain the reasoning behind your decisions and offer guidance on more personal matters.
People put all sorts of useful things in here, from specific bequests of personal belongings to funeral wishes. It means your loved ones don’t have to spend time and effort worrying about what you wanted.
A letter of wishes can be updated as often as you like without the need for a solicitor, and because it isn’t made public like a will, it gives you a degree of privacy too.
5. Keep pension “Expression of Wishes” forms up to date
Pensions are often among our biggest financial assets – yet they’re not typically covered by your will. Instead, your pension provider uses your expression of wishes form to decide who should receive your death benefits.
If your form still names an ex-spouse or an old friend from 30 years ago, that’s potentially who’ll receive the funds – regardless of your will.
6. Set up a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)
Planning ahead isn’t just about what happens after death. It’s also about protecting yourself if you lose the ability to manage your own affairs due to illness, injury or cognitive decline.
Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) allows you to legally nominate someone to make decisions on your behalf. There are two types:
Health and welfare – covers medical treatment, care homes and end-of-life decisions
Property and financial affairs – covers bank accounts, paying bills, and managing investments
Without an LPA, your family may have to apply through the Court of Protection to take control via a deputyship – a long, stressful, and often expensive process. So setting up an LPA in advance ensures you can help your loved ones avoid this costly "sadmin".
7. Tidy up your tax records
If you ordinarily complete a self-assessment tax return, your executor will need to do one final return for the tax year in which you die. This can be a logistical nightmare if your records are vague or incomplete.
Start by:
Organising paperwork – income, dividends, pensions, rental income
Keeping a digital or physical file for the current year
Including tax records in your asset register
It may seem like overkill now, but even a few organised folders could save months of stress later on.
8. Don’t get caught out by Inheritance Tax
You may assume Inheritance Tax (IHT) only affects the very wealthy – but with rising property values, more estates are creeping above the threshold.
For me, Inheritance Tax planning is the cherry on the cake after clients’ needs have been fully accounted for. It is a very emotive tax for some, as they see they are paying tax twice. However, it is absolutely a voluntary tax and there are many ways to lower the bill if that is important to you. Gifting surplus income, for example, is free and simple, without the need for complicated products such as trusts or business property relief schemes, which also have a place. Insurance also is under-used in this area.
Here’s the basic IHT breakdown:
£325,000 tax-free allowance (the nil rate band)
An extra £175,000 if passing your main residence to children or grandchildren
These allowances are transferable between spouses, giving a potential tax-free limit of £1 million for couples
If your estate could exceed these thresholds, there are legal ways to reduce your liability by gifting up to £3,000 per year. However, gifts given within 7 years of your death will be liable for IHT at a tapered rate. The rules around this are complicated so make sure to check our guide.
If you decide to gift assets to reduce your IHT liability, ensure you keep detailed records. If HMRC investigates, they’ll want dates, amounts, and evidence of intent. But crucially – never give away money you might need. Your comfort and care in later life must come first.
9. Prepare your heirs – don’t let it be a shock
Even if your estate won’t be subject to Inheritance Tax, it’s still worth having open conversations with those who will inherit from you. This gives them time to think, plan, and – importantly – ask questions.
Any help you can give them to prepare... can make a huge difference. Someone who receives an investment portfolio, for example, is far more likely to make the right decision for their needs if they understand more about the investments themselves.
This kind of transparency can help avoid confusion, disputes, or poor financial decisions. Someone inheriting an investment portfolio, for example, will be far better equipped if they understand its purpose and how it works.
10. Talk about care needs – before the crisis hits
Later-life care is something many of us don’t address until it’s absolutely necessary – by which time it may be too late to make clear, considered choices.
If you become unwell or lose capacity, your family may be left scrambling to arrange care, whether at home or in a residential setting. And with the average cost of care homes exceeding £65,000 per year[2], it can be financially overwhelming.
In some cases, the sadmin kicks in before you pass away. If you’re expecting a family member to care for you, talk to them about the practicalities.
These are big and difficult conversations, but having them early allows you and your family to plan ahead with confidence and compassion.
Final thoughts: A kindness that lasts beyond you
Getting your financial affairs in order isn’t just sensible, it’s a lasting act of care. You won’t be around to witness the relief it brings, but your family will feel it deeply.
So this Dying Matters Week, make time for the hard conversations. Update the documents. Create the lists. Simplify what you can. These actions won’t just make life easier for your loved ones – they’ll bring you peace of mind, too.
It’s always going to be an impossibly difficult time emotionally, but there are things you can do to make the practicalities easier.
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[1] Hargreaves Lansdown, April 2025
