By Brandon E. Crooks, Principal at Counsel Trust Company There are over 5.5 million family businesses in the US with an average life span of 24 years (familybusinesscenter.com, 2010). About 40% of family-owned businesses turn into second-generation businesses; approximately 13% are passed down successfully to a third generation, and 3% to a fourth generation or beyond (Businessweek.com, 2010). Business owners are attractive clients due to the amount of wealth that lies within family-owned businesses. The challenge for advisors working with this group is that the business succession risks are greater than ever because nearly a third of owners have no…
2014 Year-End Tax Planning
By Robert S. Keebler, CPA/PFS, MST, AEP (Distinguished), CGMA As we near the end of 2014, year-end tax planning again takes center stage. In this article we summarize a number of strategies that may produce substantial tax savings with just some year-end tax planning. Making Trust Distributions The tax brackets for trusts are much more compressed compared to the brackets for individuals. This suggests, if the governing instrument allows it, that trustees should consider making discretionary distributions of income to beneficiaries at the end of 2014 to reduce tax rates. Harvesting Ordinary Income Harvesting ordinary income is another part of…
3rd Annual Dynasty Trust State Rankings Chart Released
Every year, nationally renowned estate planning and asset protection attorney, Steven J. Oshins, J.D., AEP (Distinguished), puts together a state rankings chart for Dynasty Trusts, showing which states rank among the highest in the country for Dynasty Trust planning. To download a free copy of Steve’s 3rd Annual Dynasty Trust State Rankings Chart, complete the form below. In particular, some highlights of this year’s chart: include: The top 3 states are #1 South Dakota, #2 Nevada and #3 Alaska. The #4, #5 and #6 states will surprise many people. More weight was put on Decanting in this year’s chart versus…