We work alongside estate planning attorneys to maximize what actually reaches your beneficiaries, control how and when they receive it, and reduce the taxes along the way. Most of the costly mistakes we see are not exotic — they are a stale beneficiary form and a document nobody has read in a decade.
Who this is for
You might recognise yourself here
Your documents are more than five years old
Wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and healthcare directives all age. So do the people named in them.
You have a blended family
Making sure a surviving spouse is cared for and children from a prior marriage are not accidentally disinherited takes deliberate structure.
You want to leave something to a charity or a grandchild
How you give matters as much as how much. The right account and the right vehicle can change the after-tax result substantially.
What we do
How this works in practice
No jargon, no black box. Here is the actual work.
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Audit every beneficiary designation
Retirement accounts and life insurance pass by beneficiary form, not by will. This is the single most common and most expensive oversight we find.
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Review titling and account ownership
How an account is titled decides whether it goes through probate and who controls it if you cannot.
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Coordinate with your attorney
We do not draft documents. We make sure the plan the attorney drafts and the accounts we manage tell the same story — including trust funding, which is often left half-finished.
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Plan the tax of the transfer
The ten-year rule on inherited IRAs, step-up in basis on taxable assets, and which account to leave to which heir.
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Assemble the road map
One document listing accounts, advisors, and instructions, so your family is not searching through filing cabinets during the worst month of their lives.
How it fits your bigger plan
One piece of a single plan
Legacy planning is where the rest of the plan proves itself. The income plan supports you, the tax plan protects what you keep, and the legacy plan decides where it goes. Reviewing them together is how we avoid a Roth conversion that helps you but hurts your heirs, or an inheritance that lands in the wrong tax year.
See the comprehensive planQuestions
Common questions about Legacy & Estate Planning
Do you write wills or trusts?
No. We are not attorneys and we do not provide legal advice. We coordinate with your estate planning attorney — or introduce you to one — and make sure the accounts line up with the documents.
Why do beneficiary forms matter so much?
Because they override your will. A retirement account left to an ex-spouse on a form from 1998 goes to the ex-spouse, no matter what the will says. It takes ten minutes to check and it is the highest-value ten minutes in estate planning.
What is the ten-year rule on inherited IRAs?
Most non-spouse beneficiaries must now empty an inherited retirement account within ten years, which can land a large taxable distribution in their peak earning years. Which heir receives which account can materially change what they keep.
Is my estate large enough to need this?
Estate planning is not only about estate tax. It is about avoiding probate, naming who decides if you cannot, and making sure your family knows what exists and where. That applies at every level of wealth.
Related
Other pieces of the plan
Comprehensive Planning
Many pieces, one plan — the holistic engagement that ties every part of your financial life together.
Income Planning
A sustainable paycheck for retirement — Social Security timing, pensions, and survivor planning.
Investment Planning
Risk-based, customized portfolios using independent, cost-efficient funds — not a house list.
Let's talk about your plan
A relaxed, no-pressure conversation about your goals. Free, about 30 minutes, and you will leave with something useful whether or not we work together.
Veteran-owned · Independent fiduciary · Jacksonville, Florida