WILLS & POWERS OF ATTORNEY IN PLACE BUT CAN ANYONE FIND THEM? CAN YOU?

In past Taking Stock with Steele newsletters we have highlighted the importance of attaining up-to-date wills and powers of attorney (POAs) to ensure your executor knows your wishes, can execute those wishes easily and precisely, and to ensure you are well taken care of in the event of incapacity.

The next step is to ensure your important physical documents – wills, POAs, passports, birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce decrees, property/vehicle deeds, etc. – are in a watertight and fireproof location that you can easily access in case of emergency. Keeping these documents updated, neatly stored and accessible is nearly as important as getting them in place.

Digitizing Can Free Up Space and Make Accessing Files Easier!

While you should keep physical copies of your most important documents (listed above) to prove validity when necessary, you can digitize many other documents. Digitizing prevents you and your agents from shuffling through paper.

There are scanners, such as ScanSnap, and smartphone apps that allow for easy scanning and labelling of documents, which makes them easily searchable. Storing this data securely in the cloud can limit data loss if your computer is damaged or stolen. Some professionals (e.g. financial advisors, accountants, lawyers, etc.) will help store and/or share certain personal data upon request, which can limit the data you need to retain yourself.

Think Like an Executor and Attorney!

Being an executor can be a tough job requiring a tremendous amount of time and attention. Often this person is a family member or close friend. While we cannot avoid the sorrow we leave when we pass, we can reduce the hassle we leave to our executor(s).

Clearly communicating where physical and digital documentation is located is paramount. There are online services to help organize your affairs. Everplans can help organize all of the to-dos for your executor. LastPass can help pass along passwords to executors and heirs to manage your online accounts after death.

To prepare for the possibility of incapacity, it is recommended you keep a copy of your medical directive (POA) in your car’s glove box and provide a copy to your doctor and health care proxy so this document is easy to find and your attorney can quickly begin acting on your behalf.

If you ever have questions related to wills, powers of attorney or other important documents, feel free to ask a member of the Steele Wealth Management team for guidance.

Economic Tidbits timid drilling activity despite high energy prices & inflation running hot for now

North American energy companies have been very hesitant to drill and increase production (see rig counts to the right) despite oil prices sitting at a seven-year high and natural gas prices trading at the high end of its twelve-year price range. Fear of future OPEC production hikes (OPEC production remains ~12% below 2017 levels) and post-pandemic economic uncertainty may be the culprits.

Annualized US inflation hit 7.5% in January, a 40 year high, while Canadian inflation is running at ~5%. Higher energy prices are pushing the price of most consumer goods higher while low interest rates and investor speculation are pushing up housing costs. Investors expect central banks to aggressively hike interest rates to combat this high inflation, though waning government spending may do the trick.           

Le JIT A “Just-in-TIME” rundown oF our current investment theme

Cost Inflation, High Transport Costs, Supply Chain Disruptions Hurting High Volume Producers 

• Oil prices currently sit at a seven-year high, pushing up the cost of many oil-derived chemicals as well as boosting the transport costs for all products along the supply chain. High volume product manufacturers are most vulnerable to the effects of this type of inflation. Pandemic-related supply chain disruptions as well as pandemic-related business closures also hurt sales volumes for these manufacturers.
• Chemical product manufacturers Clorox (CLX) and Ecolab (ECL) are two ideas related to this theme.
• Both Clorox and Ecolab have long traded at a significant premium to the S&P 500 due to their oligopolistic market positions and favourable long-term growth expectations for the water treatment and disinfectant industries. Both companies saw their stock prices jump in response to increased demand for disinfectant and sanitation products and services during the pandemic. With inflation running hot, both stocks have since given up all of their pandemic gains and are trading at their lowest levels since the pandemic induced selloff in March 2020. This inflation scare may prove to be an excellent buying opportunity for these blue chips, if the rate of inflation wanes throughout 2022, which is what we expect.
  Key risk points: While defensive in nature, these stocks are still susceptible to equity market sentiment and economic activity. Pervasive inflation could cause continued underperformance for these names.

Jeannine’s Tip o’ the month extension of the simplified Home Office Expense Deduction

It is about time to start working on getting your tax documents in order and filing your taxes before the deadline. To provide ease of reporting expenses, especially for those who are working at home due to the pandemic, the federal government has extended the simplified home office expense deduction to the 2021 and 2022 tax years.

If you worked more than 50% of the time from home for a period of at least four consecutive weeks in the year due to the pandemic, you can claim $2 for each day you worked from home during that period, up to a maximum of $500. For some, reporting expenses using the ‘detailed method’ may be advantageous but for those working from home temporarily, the simplified method of reporting expenses is easy and may be of greater economic benefit.