Perpetual Guardian Review

Our review outlines Perpetual Guardian's services (Wills, Trusts, Enduring Power of Attorney and Estate Administration, among others), the fees, must-know facts and frequently asked questions.

Updated 3 December 2021

Why have we published this review?

Life in New Zealand is increasingly complicated and expensive. In addition, law changes mean that relationship property can be divided and sold in a separation, adversely affecting you and your family.
With so many factors to consider, we believe talking to a professional about your affairs is the best way to protect your interests.
There are two professional trustee companies operating in New Zealand - Perpetual Guardian and Public Trust. These companies are different from law firms because they have offices nationwide and aren't owned by partners or directors. They offer a fixed range of services nationwide, including setting up trusts, writing wills, establishing powers of attorney and estate administration.
MoneyHub is not pro-trusts for 'every and any situation'. Arguably, there are too many trusts in New Zealand, with Perpetual Guardian estimating between 300,000 and 500,000 active. However, for blended families and financially established people starting new relationships, trusts and contracting-out agreements (i.e. prenups) are just some tools to protect your interests.
Our view is simple - we don't want anyone to suffer financial hardship, and a relationship breakdown can be devastating as money literally walks out the door. For this reason, our review of Perpetual Guardian covers its services, costs, pros and cons and must-know facts.

To help explains what Perpetual Guardian is, what it does and what it costs, our review covers:

Disclaimer: Our review is structured to help explain what Perpetual Guardian does and who it can help. We are not reviewing the individual services offered by Perpetual Guardian (for example, its Will service or Estate Administration). Instead, we present a summary of the services Perpetual Guardian offers, its fees and must-know facts to help in your decision-making process. There are many alternatives to Perpetual Guardian's services, and professional trustee companies are not suitable for everyone.

Perpetual Guardian Services

Our review outlines Perpetual Guardian's services, including Wills, Trusts, Enduring Power of Attorney, Estate Administration, among others.

1. Wills

As outlined in our Wills guide, using a lawyer or professional trustee company is a good idea if you have a complicated family situation. This may include a second marriage, existing family trust and/or family business.
Perpetual Guardian outlines what a Will is, what to consider and how to set one up here.

More details: Read our Wills guide

2. Trusts

As a background, a trust is a legal relationship created when someone (the settlor) gives assets (for example, real estate, securities, cash or life insurance policies) to someone (the trustee) to look after and use for the benefit of someone (the beneficiary).
In a nutshell, a trust is a way to separate ownership and control of an asset from those who benefit from the asset.
Perpetual Guardian offers trust set up for individuals, families and businesses and outlines what is a trust, changes to trust legislation, trust types, setting up and managing a trust here https://www.perpetualguardian.co.nz/estate-planning-services/trusts/

More details: Read our Trusts guide

3. Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA)

An Enduring Power of Attorney is a legal document. It enables you to appoint someone (i.e. the "attorney") to make financial and care decisions on your behalf should you lack the capacity to make those decisions for yourself due to illness or injury. Such a situation may seem like a long way off, but not having an EPA in place when you need one is a costly and stressful experience.

In terms of legal terms, there are two which matter most:

Donor - the person making the EPA whose care and financial matters will be taken care of when the EPA is activated
Attorney - the person who is appointed to act in the donor's interests and make care and financial decisions on their behalf and for their benefit. This is often a trusted family member or friend.

Perpetual Guardian offers the setup of an EPA and outlines important information and considerations here.

More details: Read our EPA guide

4. Estate Administration

Perpetual Guardian outlines that Estate Administration is the process of "carrying out the wishes you lay out in your Will by making sure your estate is distributed effectively and to the right people". As we outline in our Wills guide, you can appoint anyone or any organisation to be your Will's executor. However, appointing an executor needs serious thought, and it can be a big responsibility, including personal liability if they make a mistake.

Perpetual Guardian outlines that some common options are:

Your partner or spouse and/or
Family members or friends and/or
Lawyers and/or accountants and/or
A professional trustee company (i.e. such as Perpetual Guardian)

Perpetual Guardian's Estate Administration service includes:

Locating your last Will, applying for probate and getting court approval to administer the estate
Identifying and dealing with all your assets
Identifying all possible claimants
Paying all debts and liabilities
Meeting any tax obligations
Allocating the estate to your beneficiaries (you name them in your Will)
Accounting to your beneficiaries by preparing and providing financial statements.

Know This: Perpetual Guardian charges fixed, hourly and percentage fees to administer an estate - we outline these below here.

Other Services

Other services include Philanthropy, Investments and Family Office structuring. As these are non-standard to most New Zealanders, we have excluded covering them in our review. The Perpetual Guardian website has more details.

Perpetual Guardian - Pros and Cons

Pros:

Service vs Relationship: New Zealand is small, so the thought of picking a lawyer and working with them closely may be daunting. Perpetual Guardian is different to a law firm (where relationships are arguably more personable and close) and instead offers more of a supermarket experience in its range of services, centralised headquarters and multiple locations.

Cons:

Costs: The fees charged by Perpetual Guardian may be higher than using a local lawyer, depending on your needs. Many New Zealanders appoint a trusted friend or family member who doesn't charge an hourly rate for estate administration. Perpetual Guardian, on the other hand, charges by the hour for the work they do. From discussions with parties related to Perpetual Guardian, we understand that the average Perpetual Guardian estate administration fees total around $10,000.

Be Aware:
Big business vs local experience - Perpetual Guardian has offices all over New Zealand, but it works differently from a traditional law firm. The experience is more corporate and standardised, arguably unlike calling a local solicitor or partner directly. This may make relationships feel less personal, although this doesn't diminish the quality of service.

Perpetual Guardian Fees - What You Need to Know

Law firms rarely publish their fees online, making it hard to compare and understand the costs you're likely to face. However, Perpetual Guardian does just that, with a comprehensive menu of prices. Their Guide to Charges outlines what you'll pay for a range of services, including:

1. Wills and EPAs

Wills (from $150 for a simple Will, with more complex Wills will be subject to time and cost fees based on complexity)
Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) preparation (from $150 for an EPA document, with more complex EPAs subject to time and cost fees based on complexity.
Perpetual Guardian also offers a discount for clients writing both a Will and EPA at the same time.

2. Trusts

Trusts can be more complicated. Trust establishment fees include:
Family or Business Trust Deed - $1,200
Inheritance Trust Deed - $500
Be aware that if Perpetual Guardian is involved in transferring assets to a Family or Business Trust, additional fees may apply, as detailed in the Perpetual Guardian fees guidance.

3. Estate Administration

Perpetual Guardian charges a fixed Estate Acceptance Fee of $2,500 to act as the executor role in administering an estate. This fee includes Will retrieval and review, initial meetings with family and establishment of an Estate Management Plan.
After these tasks are complete, Perpetual Guardian charges hourly charges or set fees (based on the work done).

These hourly rates are as follows:

Accountant - $115 to $250
Client Assistant - $195
Client Manager - $220 to $300
Senior or Branch Manager - $300 to $400
Specialist staff - $265
Specialist Manager - Tax, Legal, Investments and Compliance - $425

Annual Fees (for Trusts and Continuing Estate Administration after one year)

Perpetual Guardian charges a commission when it collects income on behalf of clients from non-portfolio assets and ledger balances. The fee is 5% of the gross income (except for rental income, which is charged at 7.50%).
Annual trustee services charges also apply. Because of the complexity and composition of individual estates, the best approach is to consult the Guide to Charges and contact Perpetual Guardian to talk about your situation. You can then understand the ongoing costs and compare that to a local law firm etc.

Perpetual Guardian - 5 Must-Know Facts

Ending a relationship can be expensive; Perpetual Guardian is obligated to outline all the options to protect your finances and freedoms

Perpetual Guardian outlines three client stories which are, in our experience, relevant to most New Zealanders in one way or another. They deal with trusts, wills, contracting-out agreements and enduring powers of attorney. While they may appear to be a 'worst-case scenario, they highlight the need to be protected legally.

Ultimately, Perpetual Guardian is tasked to make sure your interests are protected. What is right for you will depend on your situation and goals.

Dementia is common in New Zealand - Perpetual Guardian offers a range of resources and services to help protect sufferers and their families

Enduring Powers of Attorney and Wills are popular ways to protect and assist people with dementia. They also empower and support estate planning as well as ensure comfort and dignity is maintained. However, it's worth noting that Perpetual Guardian doesn't exclusively offer these services - any local lawyer and Public Trust can put the same protections in place.

Perpetual Guardian offers an extensive section of impartial resources

As part of our research process for legal matters, we frequently draw on public-facing resources published by Perpetual Guardian. In the interests of full disclosure, Perpetual Guardian's legal team assisted MoneyHub with the first draft of our Wills guide, which went live in mid-2018. The resource library covers Trusts, Wills, Enduring Powers of Attorney, Estates, Investments and other areas of interest.

If you're considering one or more of these services, we suggest downloading their PDF-format guides here.

Perpetual Guardian is transparent in its fee structure

As outlined above, Perpetual Guardian makes their service fees clear, although specific costs will vary based on your individual needs. Fees are either upfront (i.e. Will writing and setting up a Power of Attorney), ongoing (i.e. Estate management) and/or one-off (i.e. Estate administration, which means payout out your property to the beneficiaries in your Will). If you have a question about fees, contacting Perpetual Guardian is the best approach.

Perpetual Guardian may not always be the cheapest solution

We believe there are pros and cons to working with Perpetual Guardian; what is suitable for you depends on your circumstances. Local lawyers can offer the same services, so we suggest choosing carefully and considering all the options. Our guides to Wills, Trusts and Enduring Powers of Attorney are good places to start.

Perpetual Guardian - Frequently Asked Questions

To help explain Perpetual Guardian beyond its services, we have answered common queries below.

What does Perpetual Guardian do?

Perpetual Guardian primarily specialises in Estate Administration, Wills, Trusts and Enduring Powers of Attorney. It's a professional trustee company, meaning it offers a full range of solutions to protect wealth and help individuals and families navigate the law regarding relationship property.

Who owns Perpetual Guardian?

Founder Andrew Barnes owns the majority of Perpetual Guardian via an entity called Complectus. In July 2021, Guardian Trust and Covenant, two sister companies of Perpetual Guardian, were sold to Tricor Group, a Hong Kong-based corporate service firm. As reported by Good Returns, Perpetual Guardian, the private client services business of Complectus, was excluded from the acquisition. As such, Perpetual Guardian remains 100% New Zealand owned.

What are the alternatives to Perpetual Guardian?

Perpetual Guardian's Estate Administration, Wills, Trusts and Enduring Powers of Attorney services are also offered by most local lawyers and the likes of Public Trust. We suggest reading our guides for more information about the providers and must-know facts to help you decide what provider is best for your needs.

Where is Perpetual Guardian based?

Perpetual Guardian has locations all over New Zealand - Auckland, Tauranga, Hamilton, Rotorua, Napier, Palmerston North, New Plymouth, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch, Timaru, Dunedin and Queenstown. We understand that Perpetual Guardian serves clients living in locations outside of the above list.

Related guides and resources