Secrets of a Former Financial Advisor… Budgets

GettyImages_512193945I am a former financial advisor.  The company I worked for is not important (rhymes with “barbarian excess”), but the life and money lessons I learned from that experience proved to be very valuable.  For example, I learned that I can’t sell, which might have led to my career change into compliance oversight of financial services.  I liked helping people, and helping them solve the puzzles that were their finances and their frustrating lack of progress towards their goals.  But more often than not, I found that what was in their best interest was to keep their accounts where they were, and find a way to save more.  But as with losing weight, people don’t want the difficult and slow, albeit tried and true way to get there.  They want a magic pill that gets them results tomorrow.  Which brings me to the first lesson I learned about people and money:

Budgets Don’t Work.

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Distributing Estate Assets Fairly and Equitably

older_selfieThe estate of most individuals is worth more than just money. A family business, a summer cabin on the lake or an antique car collection may be part of a legacy, rich with family history that you want to pass to your children and grandchildren.

The challenge is to develop a plan that meets your desire to pass along specific assets to certain individuals, while making sure each family member is treated fairly and equitably. Unfortunately, these assets may not be easily dividable, may have fluctuating values and lack liquidity, as well as potential tax liabilities.

The first step in deciding how the estate is to be distributed is to determine the estate value. This takes careful planning and open discussion with advisors. Make sure to include your accountant, lawyer, real estate advisor, business valuation expert and possibly an expert in collectibles valuation. Each asset should be carefully considered with respect to its value (monetary as well as emotional) and then start to develop your plan.
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