How do we view the estate planning process?

The core purpose of an estate plan is to help you continue your legacy for future generations. 


From a financial perspective, an estate plan can help provide clarity around how your assets are to be managed and distributed, while addressing important tax, expense, and other planning considerations.

 

Our role in the process is to complement and collaborate with - not replace - your estate planning attorney. We do not draft wills, trusts, powers of attorney, or other legal documents, nor do we provide legal advice. Instead, we work alongside your attorney to help coordinate your financial assets, beneficiary designations, and ownership structures so they align with your estate plan and your broader long-term goals.

 

 

You have spent a lifetime building your assets. A proactive estate plan can help create the framework for how those assets are to be managed and transferred in a way that reflects your vision and intentions.


Listed below are some basic estate planning documents and concepts. 

  • Wills, Living Wills, and POAs
    • Wills are necessary for passing on assets after you die. They should be reviewed every few years to make sure nothing has changed.
    • Living Wills allow your medical wishes to be followed in the circumstance where you become incapacitated but are still living.
    • Having a power of attorney will allow someone of your choosing to make decisions on your behalf. A durable POA can make decisions even if you become mentally unable to do so.
    • Create a “Family Love Letter” to convey wishes that fall outside of financial accounts and legal documents.
  • Beneficiary Updates
    • It’s important to review your beneficiaries periodically to address changes.
    • Consider leaving certain assets to individual beneficiaries based on their financial situation rather than yours.
       
  • Asset Location
    • Locating your assets in specific account types can allow some to pass on to beneficiaries with added tax benefits.
  • Gifting, QCDs, and 529 Plans
    • Gifting is a common strategy for moving assets out of your estate. There are techniques we can use that aim to maximize your gifts.
    • QCDs (Qualified Charitable Distributions) are one way to gift to charity while satisfying your RMD requirements and reducing taxes simultaneously.
    • There have been recent changes to 529 plans. While their primary focus is still education funding, there are more freedoms allowed now that can be effective for estate planning.
       
  • ILITs and other Life Insurances
    • These can be designed to move assets out of your estate and pass them onto beneficiaries tax free.
  • Charitable Remainder Trusts
    • These can be an effective way of generating income while moving assets out of your estate, with the added benefit of contributing to a charitable cause.
  • GRITs GRATs and GRUTs
    • These can be an effective way of generating income while also moving assets out of your estate.