Best End-of-Life Planning Kit for NZ Blended Families
If you're in a blended family in New Zealand and looking for an end-of-life planning resource, you need one that covers the Property (Relationships) Act election, the joint tenancy trap, and KiwiSaver's lack of beneficiary nomination — because these three issues cause more unintended disinheritance in blended families than anything else, and most generic planning resources barely mention them.
The short answer: the best planning kit for a NZ blended family is one that treats property title structure, the PRA election, and multi-instrument coordination as core content rather than footnotes. A kit designed for single-family households will miss the exact complications that make blended family planning different.
Why Blended Families Need a Different Planning Approach
Standard estate planning assumes a simple family structure: one partnership, shared children, aligned inheritance goals. Blended families break every one of those assumptions:
- Competing inheritance interests — your partner and your biological children from a previous relationship have fundamentally different claims on your estate
- The PRA election — when you die, your surviving partner has the right to elect between claiming their entitlement under the Property (Relationships) Act 1976 (Option A) or taking what your will gives them (Option B). In many blended families, Option A gives the partner significantly more than the will intended
- Property title traps — how your home is registered (joint tenancy vs tenants in common) determines whether it passes through your will at all. Get this wrong and your will is irrelevant for your largest asset
These aren't edge cases. They're the default outcome when blended families don't plan specifically for their structure.
The Three Traps That Catch NZ Blended Families
Trap 1: The Joint Tenancy Override
If you and your partner own your home as joint tenants, the property passes automatically to the surviving partner by right of survivorship — regardless of what your will says. Your will cannot override joint tenancy. Your children from a previous relationship receive nothing from that asset.
Many blended-family couples purchase property as tenants in common specifically to protect each partner's share for their respective children. Under tenants-in-common ownership, each partner's share passes according to their will — typically granting the surviving partner a life interest (the right to live in the home) while preserving the underlying capital for the biological children.
The trap: if the property was originally registered as a joint tenancy and nobody changed it, the survivorship rule applies. The children are disinherited from the family home regardless of the will.
What a planning kit should cover: a decision flowchart for every property you own — what title structure it's currently registered under, whether that structure aligns with your blended-family inheritance goals, and how to change it through LINZ if it doesn't.
Trap 2: The PRA Election
The Property (Relationships) Act 1976 gives a surviving partner the right to choose between:
- Option A: claiming their entitlement under the PRA — typically 50% of the relationship property
- Option B: taking what the will gives them
In a single-family household, this rarely matters because the surviving partner and the children share aligned interests. In a blended family, Option A can be devastating: if the deceased's will splits the estate between the surviving partner (life interest in the home, some cash) and the biological children (the remaining capital), the surviving partner can reject the will entirely and claim half of all relationship property outright.
This doesn't require bad faith. The PRA election exists to protect surviving partners from being left with less than their fair share. But in blended families, "fair share" under the PRA and "intended distribution" under the will are often very different numbers.
What a planning kit should cover: a side-by-side Option A vs Option B calculation worksheet so both partners understand the financial exposure before one of them dies, plus strategies for aligning the will's provisions with PRA entitlements to reduce the incentive for an Option A election.
Trap 3: KiwiSaver Falls Into the General Estate
KiwiSaver has no beneficiary nomination mechanism. When you die, your entire KiwiSaver balance drops into the general estate and is distributed according to your will (or intestacy rules if there's no will).
In a single-family household, this is administratively inconvenient but not structurally problematic. In a blended family, it adds to the pool of relationship property that the surviving partner can claim under Option A.
With the average KiwiSaver balance at $37,079, a combined KiwiSaver-and-bank balance at the same provider can push the estate over the $40,000 per-institution probate threshold, triggering a formal High Court grant that delays access to funds for months — while the surviving partner and the biological children are already in tension over who gets what.
What a planning kit should cover: how KiwiSaver interacts with the PRA election, the probate threshold, and the distribution scheme in your will — and whether consolidating or separating banking providers affects your executor's administration burden.
What to Look For in a Blended-Family Planning Kit
| Feature | Why It Matters for Blended Families | Found in Generic Kits? |
|---|---|---|
| Property title decision flowchart | Determines whether the home passes through the will or bypasses it entirely | Rarely — most kits mention joint tenancy without providing a decision tool |
| PRA election worksheet | Lets both partners see the financial impact of Option A vs Option B before death | Almost never — this is specialist planning content |
| Multi-instrument coordination | EPAs, advance directives, and wills must align when family dynamics are complex | Partially — most kits treat each document independently |
| Executor selection guidance for blended families | An executor from one "side" creates perceived bias; a neutral executor costs money | Rarely addressed |
| Family conversation frameworks | The conversation with biological children about a new partner's inheritance is different from a standard family discussion | Usually generic conversation guides only |
| Life interest vs outright bequest guidance | Life interests protect capital for children but restrict the surviving partner — the tradeoffs need explicit treatment | Specialist content, rarely in consumer kits |
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The Available Options
Option 1: Specialist Estate Planning Lawyer
A family lawyer experienced in blended-family estates can draft a will, contracting-out agreement, and trust structure tailored to your specific situation.
Cost: $2,000–$5,000+ for a comprehensive blended-family plan (will, EPAs, contracting-out agreement, potentially a testamentary trust).
Best for: families with high-value estates, complex trust needs, or active family conflict where legal enforceability is paramount.
Limitation: addresses the legal documents but not the administrative processes (probate, KiwiSaver claims, LINZ transfers) your executor will face after death.
Option 2: Digital Will Service
EveryWill and Footprint offer low-cost online will creation.
Cost: $0 (EveryWill basic) to $120/year (Footprint subscription).
Best for: simple estates where the will is the main planning task.
Limitation: these platforms handle the will document itself. They do not address the PRA election, property title structure, KiwiSaver estate interactions, or EPA coordination — the exact issues that make blended-family planning different from standard planning. EveryWill's own documentation notes it does not support complex blended family structures.
Option 3: Government Resources
Te Hokinga ā Wairua and Govt.nz provide free guidance on death-related processes.
Cost: Free.
Best for: understanding statutory rules and finding basic process information.
Limitation: government portals explain what the law says without organising it into a practical sequence. They cover probate rules but not the PRA election's interaction with your will. No worksheets, no decision tools, no blended-family-specific guidance.
Option 4: Comprehensive Planning Guide With Blended-Family Coverage
A structured planning guide that covers all five instruments (will, both EPAs, advance directive, advance care plan), the PRA election, property title decisions, and the full administrative sequence.
Cost: $29 (one-time).
Best for: blended families who want to understand every interaction and tradeoff before engaging professional help. Arrives with printable worksheets (including a PRA election worksheet for the Option A vs Option B calculation).
Limitation: not a legal document — you still need a lawyer for drafting enforceable documents, and blended families in active conflict over inheritance should start with a solicitor.
Who This Is For
- Blended families in New Zealand who want to understand the PRA election, property title implications, and KiwiSaver complications before paying for legal advice
- Couples in second marriages or de facto relationships who own property together and have children from previous relationships
- Anyone who has been told "just get a will" and suspects that a will alone doesn't solve the blended-family inheritance problem (they're right — it doesn't)
- Parents who want to protect their children's inheritance from a previous relationship while still providing for their current partner
Who This Is NOT For
- Families in active conflict where one partner's children are already disputing the other partner's inheritance rights — start with a family lawyer, not a planning guide
- High-net-worth families who need a full trust structure designed by a specialist — the guide explains how testamentary trusts work in the blended-family context, but the drafting requires professional advice
- Couples who have already completed a contracting-out agreement under the PRA and have a solicitor managing their estate plan — your situation is already being handled at the appropriate professional level
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a contracting-out agreement solve the PRA election problem?
It can. A contracting-out agreement (sometimes called a "prenup" or "section 21 agreement") is a legal contract between partners that overrides the PRA's default property-sharing rules. If both partners agree — with independent legal advice on each side — they can specify exactly how property will be divided on death or separation, eliminating the Option A election risk. The agreement must be signed by both parties with each having received independent legal advice, or it can be set aside by the court.
Can I leave everything to my children and nothing to my partner?
Not reliably. Even with a contracting-out agreement, your partner may be able to claim under the Family Protection Act 1955 if they have been left without adequate provision. The court balances moral duties against the testator's wishes. In practice, most blended-family wills provide the surviving partner with a life interest in the home and income from the estate, with the capital ultimately passing to the biological children.
What if we own property in both names as joint tenants?
The survivorship rule applies automatically — the property passes to the surviving owner regardless of the will. If your blended-family plan requires each partner's share to pass to their own children, you need to sever the joint tenancy and re-register as tenants in common. This is a LINZ process that can be done without the other owner's consent (it's a unilateral right), though doing it without discussion creates obvious relationship friction.
How does KiwiSaver interact with the PRA election?
KiwiSaver balances are personal property and relationship property (if accumulated during the relationship). Under the PRA, the surviving partner's Option A election can capture a share of the deceased's KiwiSaver balance as relationship property. There's no way to ring-fence it because there's no beneficiary nomination — it simply falls into the estate and becomes part of the property pool.
Should we appoint the same executor or different executors?
Different executors. Each partner should appoint an executor who understands their side of the family — typically a trusted friend or sibling rather than a child from either side, which avoids the perception of bias. A neutral professional executor is another option, but the cost (4–5% of gross estate at Public Trust) is significant. What matters most is that each partner's executor understands the blended-family structure and the intended distribution scheme.
The New Zealand End-of-Life Planning Guide includes a PRA Election Worksheet (Option A vs Option B calculation), a Property Title Worksheet (decision flowchart for each property), and Family Conversation Starters designed for the specific dynamics of blended-family planning discussions.
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