A COMPANION TO YOUR WISDOM WILL

A week before 911, Mark Colgan lost his wife to heart disease.

In the span of a single day, he went from waking up next to her to planning her burial. Even for a Certified Financial Planner™, the mountain of financial and legal details that spanned the next year of his life was overwhelming.

Whether you’re a surviving spouse, partner, child, or friend, Death’s Red Tape guides you gently through the financial and administrative process following the death of a loved one. The book is organized chronologically in small, clear sections so you can face each task one step at a time, with checklists to keep things simple. It even includes a glossary of technical terms along with valuable websites and resources you’ll need along the way. In this difficult time, a book can’t erase all the challenges of your loss, but it can make the practical aspects of navigating that loss a little easier.

MARK COLGAN understands the unique financial needs and overwhelming emotional challenges that come in the aftermath of losing a loved one. His personal experience, combined with more than two decades of wealth management expertise, inspired him to help other bereaved survivors organize their financial affairs and forge a clear path to financial independence so they can enjoy a brighter tomorrow.

After my husband passed, I was at a loss of where or how to start to get a handle on my financial matters. Mark and his team were wonderful with me, gently guiding me and providing assurances along the way. They demystified the processes after a loved one dies, which helped me immensely during a very difficult time.

I have been a tax accountant for over fifty years. As my clients have lost loved ones, I have provided them with previous versions of this book. It has enabled them to navigate the administrative difficulties that follow a loved one’s death. Mark details things step by step and addresses modern challenges such as social media and identity theft.

Mark’s comprehensive experience with personalized, humanized, and successful financial planning and the devastating loss of his wife as their life was just beginning are brought together in this perspicacious book that will help guide you through your own personal loss and inspire hope for a brighter future.

I read this book shortly after losing my father. His estate was well organized, yet the book still offered me several helpful tips to consider. Credit reporting, identity theft, junk mail, and the probate/estate process were among several of the topics I found helpful and interesting.