“Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes,” Benjamin Franklin wrote in 1789.
This sentiment holds true over 200 years later as taxes appear poised to be raised on high income earners. If you are concerned about the impact on your family’s nest egg, don’t wait to start making plans. Protect your family’s assets by working with an estate planning attorney now.
The Earlier You Plan, the More Options You Have
A well-crafted estate plan provides peace of mind to yourself and your loved ones. Starting early gives you more options and flexibility to achieve your goals. Estate planning attorneys use a variety of tools including trusts such as a GRAT, CRUT, IDGT, QSST, and others, often in conjunction with a valuation from Adamy Valuation. In many cases, with the right planning, you can take advantage of today’s tax rules to protect against future changes in the tax code.
Why you Need an Estate Planning Attorney
While there are many good planning tools, the rules can get complicated, particularly when a business is involved. Finding the right solution for your family and executing well is critical. That is where a skilled estate planning attorney is invaluable. Anyone who owns a business or significant assets should be working with their attorney to develop and execute a plan that meets their family’s long-term goals.
When it comes to estate planning, many first think of a will. An experienced attorney should prepare this document. Bequests can be contested, or the state may make decisions you thought were accounted for without a clearly defined will or trust. Estate planning attorneys work to ensure there are no mistakes or unintended consequences. However, effective estate planning for business owners only begins with a will.
Trusts are extremely useful tools that estate planning attorneys use to protect assets and control the transfer of assets to beneficiaries. Trusts have important advantages over wills, including flexibility and the ability to keep family details private. Trusts are often used to hold ownership interests in family businesses and other assets.
Locking It In Today
Trusts play an important role in transferring assets out of your estate today and offering protection against future tax changes. The flexibility and variety of trusts allows your attorney to design a structure that best meets your family’s needs. For example, you may wish to provide certain assets to your children when they reach certain ages. You may want to limit the use of assets only for certain purposes, like education, purchase of a first home, or starting a business. You may have charitable goals. Attorneys can design trusts to meet these objectives.
In many cases, transferring business ownership and other assets into a trust today can take advantage of current favorable tax rules, such as the lifetime exemption amount of gifting, protecting you from unfavorable changes in the future. By using a trust, despite transferring assets today, you may be able to continue to control how those assets are used. In addition, certain structures can take advantage of valuation discounts inherent in small blocks of private stock.
With potential changes in the tax code looming, now is the time to protect your estate from tax hikes and mistakes by engaging an experienced estate planning attorney.
How Adamy Valuation Works with You and Your Attorney
When transferring business ownership into a trust, an independent, professional valuation is key. The valuation needs to stand up to IRS scrutiny. We work with you and your attorney to provide a rock-solid valuation to support your estate planning transactions.
Our valuation experts have deep experience in developing robust analysis that stands up to IRS scrutiny, particularly when it comes to valuation discounts.
Contact us today
Contact one of our experts today to learn more.
