Some attorneys are working feverishly to get clients’ assets into a specialized trust before proposed federal legislation eliminates the provisions that have made it so popular as a means of significantly reducing taxes....
Legislators in Congress are reportedly considering creating a kind of Roth IRA version of the estate tax. On The Money, a blog of the congressional newspaper The Hill, this week said lawmakers are considering whether to let taxpayers have the option of paying estate taxes in advance so they don’t owe that money when they die. ...
While Congress is preoccupied with other matters, legislation reforming estate taxes remaind stalled. What should advisors be discussing with their high-net-worth clients to alleviate some of the uncertainty?...
Financial Advisors may discuss charitable giving with clients for the same reason that most people choose to give in the first place: It's the right thing...
We all know what a lousy third-quarter Merrill Lynch had it reported the worst loss in its 93-year history (a $2.3 billion net loss along with a staggering...
One would think a client's collection of 50 cars, let alone 50 Corvettes, would be hard for a team of financial advisors and estate planners to ignore....
Some advisors say they feel unprepared and uncomfortable talking about charitable giving with clients. But those with experience say it’s both easy and rewarding. ...
Helping a client with estate planning usually means a discussion of trusts, life insurance, and various gifting strategies, which ostensibly will protect...
If you provide estate-planning services to wealthy aging clients, there’s one detail you might not want to overlook—because many of your clients probably have. Although most wealthy Americans plan to leave their money to their children, and believe it’s important that the next generation manage wealth responsibly, few of them have written any incentives into an existing will or trust. ...
Whatever happens to estate taxes, there will still be a strong need for putting together trusts and insurance policies that enable your clients' assets to survive their death intact....
We've been getting a lot of calls from financial advisors about reverse mortgages, and, clearly, we're not the only ones. According to a survey of 111...
For most advisors, Let's look at your IRA beneficiaries is about the 39th step in the financial planning process if it gets addressed at all. Worse yet,...
It's easy to forget that retired clients of relatively modest means can actually develop huge adverse tax consequences once they are forced to take minimum...
When it comes to client-advisor communications about charitable giving, something is amiss. That, at least, is the conclusion of a survey conducted by...
The rapper Notorious B.I.G. had it right: The more money we come across, the more problems we see. If planning for wealthy people is daunting, planning...
Buried within many of the boilerplate financial planning questionnaires used by advisors is an innocuous little line that says something like, Any expected...
By Daniel L. Daniels, David T. Leibell and Russ Alan Prince
Collectibles such as art, antiques, jewelry, stamps, coins and automobiles can constitute a significant portion of the estate of a wealthy individual....
Inheritance is the stuff of dreams for advisors and clients alike, but it often has nightmarish potential. There's one good reason for this: People have...
Ask the typical financial advisor if he provides advanced-planning services, and you are likely to receive an affirmative reply 99 percent of the time....
By Daniel L. Daniels, David T. Leibell and Russ Alan Prince
In the wake of the Terry Schiavo case and the death of Pope John Paul II many clients are focusing on end-of-life issues, particularly those surrounding...
Say you meet up with a married couple in their mid 60s with three adult children and a net worth of $3 million $1.5 million in his IRA, $500,000 in their...
Tax planning for estates took a hit in 2001 when the White House decided to repeal the estate tax in 2010. But business is back. As the debate drags on...
By Daniel L. Daniels, David T. Leibell and Russ Alan Prince
The 2001 tax reform act built uncertainty into the estate-planning process. Under the act, estate tax rates decrease until 2009. The estate tax disappears...
Estate taxes may be the bane of wealthy families, but they are a boon for wealth managers because clients need their help with trusts, gifts and investment...
Profiles and fact sheets of independent broker/dealers and registered investment advisories (RIAs), an outsourcing guide, listings of compliance/regulatory consultants, securities lawyers, recruiters, back-office technology offerings and asset management platform providers.
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