When it comes to estate planning, trusts are powerful tools that can help individuals maintain control, protect assets, and provide for loved ones. However, understanding the different types of trusts for estate planning can feel overwhelming without the right guidance. In this article, we’ll explore four widely used trusts—testamentary, revocable living, irrevocable, and special needs trusts—and clarify how each one functions.
When it comes to wealth and legacy, even the rich and famous can get estate planning wrong—and sometimes in very public and expensive ways. From overlooked documents to poor communication and failed funding of trusts, these missteps often lead to years of legal battles and unintended consequences for heirs.
At Paces Ferry Wealth Advisors, we believe that clear, coordinated planning is essential, regardless of how much money you have. Here’s a look at several high-profile estate planning mistakes and what we can all learn from them.
When it comes to estate planning, how your accounts are titled can have a significant impact on what happens to your assets after you pass away. Certain titling strategies can help you avoid probate, simplify asset distribution, and ensure your wishes are carried out. Others—if not handled properly—can lead to unintended consequences.
In this article, we’ll walk through three common account titling strategies and how each one works:
Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship (JTWROS)
Tenancy in Common
Transfer on Death (TOD) or Designated Beneficiary Accounts
Estate planning is an essential step in helping protect your financial legacy and guiding how your wishes are to be carried out. While the process may seem complex, you can address the majority of estate planning needs by having three key documents in place: a will, power of attorney, and healthcare directives.
These documents help you manage your assets, protect your loved ones, and help direct your affairs according to your preferences. If you haven’t reviewed your estate plan in years—or don’t have one at all—now is the time to get started.
Navigating the journey of entrepreneurship involves much more than just growing a business—it’s also about providing for its continuity and impact well into the future. Estate planning for business owners is not merely a strategy for personal wealth management, but a crucial step in cementing a lasting legacy that transcends their own tenure. If you’re an entrepreneur looking for guidance on building a legacy that may last, read on to explore how thorough planning can better safeguard your business’s future, give you a better chance at protecting your family’s financial security, and help you maintain the integrity of your life’s work beyond retirement.
Strategies to Consider for Helping Secure Your Wealth and Preserving Your Legacy
Estate planning is a critical aspect of financial management for anyone who is looking to further protect their wealth and ensure their wishes are honored after death. However, the planning process becomes even more intricate for high-net-worth individuals with significant assets to plan for. Because these individuals have accumulated substantial wealth over their lifetimes, they may need advanced estate planning tools to ensure a smooth transition of their assets to the next generation while also minimizing tax liabilities and maintaining financial security.
If you’ve accumulated significant wealth and are in the process of planning your estate, below are several advanced estate planning tools tailored to the unique needs of high-net-worth individuals that may be beneficial to your planning.
Estate planning is a critical aspect of financial management, especially if you are a high-net-worth individual. To optimize your financial legacy while complying with legal requirements, it is essential to consider tax-efficient strategies. By implementing effective high-net-worth estate planning techniques, you may minimize tax liabilities and ensure a smooth transition of wealth to future generations. Below, we will explore a comprehensive range of tips for tax-efficient estate planning that may help you maximize the preservation and distribution of your assets.
Zachary Morris CFP®, Managing Partner & Founder of Paces Ferry Wealth Advisors was the guest speaker at the Galleria-Northwest Atlanta Kiwanis Club meeting on October 12, 2022. meeting. Zach presented a primer on Estate Planning for members with many commenting that the presentation was informative, insightful and practical.
How to Develop a Comprehensive Financial Strategy to Set Your Family Up for Success
Every family will experience various stages of life and unexpected events as the members of that family grow. Having a strong family financial plan in place can help ensure that, no matter what your family encounters, you’ll remain on firm financial footing. Developing a comprehensive strategy for managing your money requires that you start with the basics – that means setting up a budget, paying down your debts, and building a solid safety net for emergencies. Depending on the family, it may also mean investing for retirement and starting a special savings account dedicated to future college costs.
Personal financial planning can be complicated enough, so financial planning for your entire family can be especially challenging. However, it’s not impossible. With dedication and deliberate care, you can make a family financial plan that works for everyone. No matter your family’s situation, there are key elements that should be included in any family financial plan. As you get started with yours, here are seven key steps to consider.
Don’t Skip this Often-Overlooked Step as You Plan the Disposition of Your Estate
Legacy planning, also called estate planning, is a long-term process. In fact, you’ve probably been engaged in it for much of your adult life, even if you didn’t realize it in the moment. Things like taking out a life insurance policy and naming beneficiaries on your retirement accounts are important steps in planning the eventual disposition of your estate and ensuring those you care about will be financially secure.
On the formal side of things, it’s important that you meet with an estate planning attorney, write a legal will, draft a durable power of attorney, and execute an advanced health care directive. In this article, however, we will examine an important legacy planning step that is too often overlooked: preparing your heirs to receive their inheritance – and helping them to preserve and grow it, as well.