It is a world of harsh realities for reps. Interest rates are at historic lows; stocks, while showing signs of life, are still radioactive to many clients. Yet competition for high-net-worth investors is at an all-time high. Client referrals...
As previously discussed in this column, creating and funding a family limited partnership or limited liability company (both types are referred to herein as an ) may well result in substantial estate gift tax savings. Recent cases involving FLPs...
The most important element in determining gift and estate liability is the value of the asset being transferred. To reduce that value, estate planners create family limited partnerships (FLPs) and family limited liability companies (LLCs). The...
In your initial meetings with clients, an answer to one question will give you insight into their values, lives and dreams and create a healthy anxiety that will motivate them to enlist your services. As nonchalantly as possible, ask, When you die...
Within 15 minutes of my daughter Ellie's birth, I not only opened an UTMA investment account for her; I also planned out where she would attend college and what she would do when she grew up. Judging by her high-pitched wailing, I figured either a...
You know him: The Trust-Fund Brat the party-hearty, layabout rich kid who never made a dime in his life and scoffs at the word The type of guy that might be inclined to ditch his dorm room and blow the endowment on Porsche, Prada and Paris. The...
When a spouse dies, the law is completely clear. In the U.S., even without a will, the widow or widower automatically gets the assets. Being married is like taking the car pool lane, says Frederick Hertz, an attorney in Oakland, Calif., and author...
Last month we discussed the benefits of limited partnerships and limited liability companies as estate planning tools. This month we will look at the recent Hackl case, which struck terror in the hearts of estate planning professionals and their...
