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Wills that work
Clear, legally sound wills covering asset distribution, guardianship and executor nomination, reviewed as life changes.
Services · Wills, estates & executorship
Your legacy, handled with competence and care
Estates in South Africa take 10 to 24 months to wind up, and badly planned ones take longer and cost more. We draft wills, plan estates around tax, and act as professional executor, so the people you love inherit assets, not admin.
Who it's for
People we do this best for
Wills, estate planning, trusts and professional executorship with transparent statutory fees.
- Parents who need guardianship and inheritance set out clearly
- Owners whose business must survive their death
- Families wanting a professional, impartial executor
- Anyone whose will is more than three years old
What's included
Everything this covers
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Estate planning around tax
Estate duty runs at 20% above the R3.5 million abatement and 25% above R30 million. We structure to keep more of your estate in the family.
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Trusts
Testamentary and inter vivos trusts established where they genuinely protect assets and beneficiaries, not as default products.
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Professional executorship
We administer the estate end to end: Master of the High Court, SARS, creditors, valuations and distribution, with regular updates in plain language.
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Beneficiary nomination audits
Retirement funds and life policies pass outside your will. We check the nominations actually match your plan.
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Asset protection and preservation
Legal and financial measures that shield your wealth from creditors, unforeseen liabilities and future risk, so more of the estate reaches the people it is meant for.
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Business succession built in
Your business interests woven into your personal estate plan, so leadership passes cleanly and the company keeps trading the day after, instead of stalling inside the estate.
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Impartial dispute resolution
If beneficiaries disagree, a neutral professional executor mediates toward an amicable outcome, protecting both family relationships and estate value from costly legal battles.
Why Arbor
One team across tax, accounting and wealth
The same people who file your returns see how every number fits together, so the advice pulls in one direction.
FAQ
The things people actually ask us
The statutory maximum is 3.5% of gross estate value plus VAT, plus 6% of income earned after death. We charge 1.75%, half that maximum, agreed upfront, and unlike many institutions we tell you the number before you sign anything.
A straightforward estate typically takes 10 to 24 months: reporting to the Master, the section 35 account, advertising and distribution all carry waiting periods. A professional executor cannot remove the legal steps, but does prevent the months of drift that DIY executors commonly add.
Intestate succession law decides who inherits, the Master appoints an executor for you, and guardianship of children can become a court question. It is slower, costlier and very rarely what you would have chosen. A proper will is a small fee against a large risk.
On the dutiable estate above R3.5 million, yes, rising to 25% above R30 million. Bequests to a spouse are exempt, and a surviving spouse can inherit the unused abatement, up to R7 million combined. Planning around these rules is most of the value of estate planning.
Become a client
Talk to the wills, estates & executorship team
One conversation, a fixed quote within 2 business days, and a named specialist from day one.