Succession Planning

If you own a family business, retirement isn't simply a matter of deciding not to go into the office anymore. Or what will happen to the business if something happens to you. You've got some critical questions to answer like...

• "What happens to the business when you're no longer running it?"
• "Will you have enough money to retire?"

The family dynamic complicates the whole transition because of the relationships and emotions involved. Most people are not comfortable discussing topics such as aging, death, and financial affairs.

Twice this year I have had a widow come in that did not have any knowledge of the financial affairs of her husband's business. With both being a new client, we did not have any of their financial records and we were not knowledgeable of their business. We had to piece together the financial history and bring it current. What could have been a simple task became a burden on the widow and dragged on for an extended period.   

Comfortable or not, succession planning should be a priority for any family business considering that more than seven out of ten family-owned businesses fail to survive the transition from founder to second generation, typically falling prey either to estate taxes or family discord - or both.

Developing and implementing a well-designed succession plan is essential to the survival of a family business from one generation to the next. Sometimes the plan is as simple as maintaining good records, keeping everyone informed and having a CPA that you trust involved.

We help you with these key issues -

• Keeping it in the family. Are you going to pass the business on to your family or sell it to a third party? We help you weigh the advantages and disadvantages of each of these options.

• Who's going to run the business when you're gone? Management and ownership are not one and the same. You may decide to transfer management of your business to just one of your children but transfer equal shares of business ownership to all your children, whether they're actively involved in the business or not.

• Minimizing the tax bite. The tax burden when transitioning a family business can be significant. The challenge is that a family business is not generally a liquid asset, but taxes are typically due when ownership is transferred.

• Making it fair. Transferring family ownership often adds a tremendous amount of stress to individual family members. We talk with each of the family members to ensure that they feel they a getting an equitable and fair share of the pie.

What we do for you...

Once we understand how you feel about the key issues above, we begin constructing your succession plan focusing on these 5 issues...

1. Business Valuation

2. Business Restructuring

3. Tax Consequences

4. Retirement Projections

5. Tax Projections