Retirement strategies and estate planning
Planning your future security
Everyone hopes to maintain the same standard of living in retirement as they presently enjoy while working, but to achieve this requires considerable forward planning. Here are some important questions you need to ask yourself
Exit strategies
If you are in business, the first thing you need to consider is your exit strategy. Will you withdraw from the business, leaving it for the next generation, or will you hope to sell the business? If you intend to hand the business over, do you have a workable succession plan? If you intend to sell, how will you value the business, find a suitable buyer, etc.? Are you aware of all the tax implications of the timing of disposals?
We will work with you to answer the following key questions :
What are your personal goals?
Do you know where you want to be in 5 or 10 years time?
How much will your business/assets need to be worth to get you there?
What are your business goals?
Where do you want your business to be in 5 or 10 years time?
Do these tie in with your personal goals?
What route do you need to take to achieve your goals?
Have you got the right structure in place to get you there?
What else will you need?
Have you got all the key people on board?
Have you got the right team?
Are they all heading in the same direction?
Are the key people committed tothe plan?
Can your plans be unhitched by unwanted changes in direction?
Do you have a strategy if disaster hits your team?
What happens if you die, or get sick?
What happens if any of the team die, get sick or leave?
Pension provision
Have you made adequate pension provision ,and do you have the right type of pension?
Are you aware of all the pension possibilities open to business owners and directors? Are you making full use of all your allowances?
Savings and investments
Do you have the right balance between savings and investments, and between high and low risk exposures?
Life assurance and long-term care
Do you have adequate life assurance, and have you made provision for long-term care and medical insurance for you and your spouse in your later years. Few of us like to think about dying, but equally few of us could live with the thought that we have not made adequate provision for family and friends who survive us.
The legislation that governs passing on your estate to your chosen beneficiaries requires you to plan well in advance. Since none of us knows when we shall die, this means making the necessary provisions now. The earlier you make the arrangements, the greater your chance of taking full advantage of the tax opportunities available and thereby maximising the amount that goes to your beneficiaries.
Nothing is more demoralising than the thought that a substantial slice of the wealth you have worked hard to accumulate will end up in the Governments coffers!
It is equally important when planning to transfer your estate that you make adequate provision for yourself and your spouse in your later years. Striking this balance calls for considerable skill and foresight - and a detailed knowledge of the tax regime.
We provide a discreet estate planning service that includes:
- Help with drawing up and reviewing tax provisions within your will
- Making full use of exemptions and lower tax rates on lifetime transfers
- Optimising lifetime transfers between spouses
- Transferring agricultural or business property
- Transferring assets into trust
- Arranging adequate life assurance to cover potential inheritance tax liabilities
