Legacy planning
Legacy planning is the act of preparing how you will bequeath your property and assets to your loved ones after your death. It’s more or less a synonym of estate planning, but the term has gained more popularity in recent years.
Legacy planning
The typical legacy planning strategy centers around planning the transfer of wealth and assets from you to your heirs. Depending on the size of your estate, this plan may be very simple or very complex.
There are more abstract elements attached to legacy planning. This might include discussing the values you’d like to impart on your heirs, or crafting a family narrative that encompasses more than simply real estate or cash assets. It might also place a heavy emphasis on charitable giving.
Why Is it Important?
Whether you call it estate planning or legacy planning, transferring wealth from estate to beneficiary is often far from simple. Just dealing with the probate process alone can take months, sometimes years. Many legacy or estate plans will therefore rely on trusts to avoid the probate process altogether.
Whatever strategy you employ, it’s smart to work with a financial professional. For a typical estate plan, it’s smart to work with an estate planning attorney who can help you prepare documents such as wills and trusts. As legacy planning is purportedly a more holistic process, it may be smart to also find a financial advisor. An advisor can help you arrange your investments and build a financial plan that helps ensure a strong financial legacy for your children and grandchildren.
You’ll also want to ensure that when you pass away, you’re maximizing what you can leave for their family. Usually, this means minimizing what goes to taxes. A sound legacy planning strategy, built with the help of a financial professional, can ensure that you accomplish this goal.
You’ve worked hard to build what you have. So, it’s only natural that you want to establish and nurture a legacy that will last for years or even decades after you’ve gone. Accomplishing the estate planning basics like a last will and advance directive are of vital importance. But, it’s also beneficial to think about the process more holistically.
Creating and maintaining a legacy plan gives you your best chance at that lasting legacy, whether that involves creating a trust, starting a foundation, crafting your last will and testament or all of the above. By creating your legacy plan, you are ensuring that you can continue to support the people you love even after you’ve died.
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