Overview
Estate planning is the process in which you “plan” on who will receive your assets when you pass away. It also prevents your wealth from going to unintended beneficiaries. If you have not properly “planned” for all of your assets and wealth to be distributed after your passing, your assets will have an uncertain future. This lack of predictability means a lack of comfort for your loved ones. To ensure your wishes are carried out, you need to provide instructions stating who you want to be the beneficiaries that are receiving your assets, what you want them to receive, and when they should receive it.
Are any of the following asset categories held by you?
Investment Properties
Investment accounts in stocks, bonds, and a retirement fund
Ownership in a company
Valuable tangible items such as vehicles, jewelry, and gold
Life Insurance
If you have any of the above, you should consider estate planning. Your estate consists of everything that you own, no matter how large or small. For real estate investors and developers, estate planning can help mitigate the consequences of a client’s death which may negatively impact their existing business interests.
What Should Good Estate Planning Include?
Minimize transfer and income taxes
Designate someone to have authority over the management of your assets if you become incapacitated
The orderly and efficient administration of assets upon the death of a client
Provide liquidity for necessary cash expenditures
Reducing claims from creditors
Is it Too Early to Start Planning?
When you are early, you are just too early. When you are late, you are too late. You need to be concerned about your beneficiaries. You must plan for your loved ones and family by putting together ya sound financial estate plan that will not only protect your assets from being distributed against your will but also benefit them after your passing. With help from an attorney who practices estate planning, you can execute a good succession plan for your estate.
Estate Planning requires meticulous attention to detail. At Lee & Lum, LLP, we advise individuals, families, family-owned businesses, and charitable foundations in the planning and administration of complex trusts and estates. We offer cutting-edge, customized transfer tax and estate plans, utilizing trusts, wills, various entity structures, such as partnerships and LLCs, and domestic and cross-border plans, to preserve and enhance our clients’ wealth for current and future generations.