Succession Planning
Handing over your business to family members successfully can mean the difference between
being financially sound for life or losing the value of many years of work and effort. More
than 70 percent of family-owned businesses do not survive transition from founder to second
generation. Rather, they fall prey to either tax or family discord. Developing and implementing
a well-designed plan insures the long- term success of the business you’ve grown and developed
during your lifetime.

Succession planning applies even when you do not have a family member in line to take over
your business. One day you are going to need to exit the business either through retirement or
sale. Succession planning covers the key steps to prepare the business for that moment.
Don’t delay in planning for your business’s future. Planning for succession should be an
integral part of your business plan from the very beginning.

Estate Planning
Congress has enacted quite possibly the most confusing new tax legislation affecting federal
estate and gift tax. To make it even worse, after you have learned all of the new rules, you can
forget them on December 31, 2010, because starting on the next day, the new rules are gone,
and the old rules are back.

Of course, no one really expects that Congress will not make some changes to the new
legislation in the upcoming years. However, this uncertainty makes planning for your heirs even
more complicated. If you expect to be worth more than $1 million in the current decade – count
your home, investments, retirement funds, and life insurance benefits – start planning now with
the help of a pro.

Estate planning is not just for avoiding tax. Planning for what is done with your assets after your
death can avoid having those assets end up in the hands of someone that you did not intend to
inherit them. Making your wishes known can eliminate family disputes that can tear the family
apart. Face the fact that some day you will die – and start planning now for what happens to
everything that you spent your life working for.