Why Wealth Transfers Should Mimic the Building Process
When doing your estate plan, the last person to sit down with should be estate planning attorney.
Like building a house, first you sit down with an architect. They help design and build out your plan. A good architect starts with a lot of good questions. They ask about what you want to do in the house, and lots of where, why and who questions. Once you together figure out what you are trying to do, then you get the contractor, builder, etc. in place when you know what you are trying to pull off.
The same idea applies to estate planning. In fact, let’s call it wealth transfer. Wealth transfer is about more than documents; more than the technical and more than beating the IRS at their game. A well-designed wealth transfer blueprint accomplishes the goals more efficiently and more effectively. Then when the rest of the financial team joins in, there is a clear plan to follow.
But where do you find a wealth transfer architect? Why start without my attorney? And how much is going to cost? What will my kids think? Honestly, that sounds odd.
One at a time.
It sounds odd. True. It does sounds kind of weird to start wealth transfer process with anyone but an estate planning attorney. Attorneys and technical minded professionals are hugely needed, but at the right time. In my experience, attorneys like to bill hourly and like to pop out documents not unlike a factory. They often miss the asking of deep questions to get to you know you. Although this approach may sound weird but it will save time and drafting a document that doesn’t match you.
What will my kids think? Funny, most estate planning processes never involve the kids. I can attest, inheriting money can change your life. My anecdotal experience with over 75 inheritors tells me if you inherit five times your income or less it won’t change you all that much. Those heirs will likely buy a new car, go on a vacation but won’t stop working. Inheriting ten times your income, however, will most likely become an identity changing event. Your heirs should weigh in at least on the process that could rock them so greatly.
Why start without an attorney? If you truly want to prepare a legacy plan and transfer wealth, more than disinheriting Uncle Sam, then starting with your goals, who you are and asking questions without feeling the clock running is essential. If all you desire to do is simply cut out taxes that is fairly simple. If you’d like your wealth to be a blessing a not a curse, that work is harder to do. Research tells us a full 80% of the wealthy are the first generation to be wealthy. So, these conversations are odd, and need outside input and you are typically navigating through unchartered territory. Having a guide through rougher waters makes sense here too.
How much is this going to cost? It depends. But you knew we was going to say that. But asking cost for legacy work out of the cuff is like walking into a doctor’s office asking about which meds I should take. It truly does depend. Some families need to spend time on togetherness activities first before they lean into wealth transfer issues. Some families have the technical covered but their kids are completely unaware of the magnitude. Some families simply need another good peer to talk to first. Others process more slowly. So, what is the scope of what you are looking for?
But to answer the question… for individual attention from a family dynamics consultant will likely cost $300-700/hour. The process will be unique, but will likely take about 1-2 hours plus per adult over 18 in your family for discovery. Then you can add in time for family meeting facilitation, feedback meetings with the family champion, and time to work with your existing professional team to implement. It adds up, but the result in the end will be far better. It will be a legacy plan and not merely documents that are boilerplate and give the kids money in thirds at three ages.
Where do you find someone like this? Not to sound to self-serving but we know over 50 world class professionals who do this work. Feel free to reach out on the contact form of this site. We personally are not a fit for everyone but could help steer you in the right direction based on a free one-hour video call. Another organization to know about is Purposeful Planning Institute. They are, in general, a group of quite competent folks and likely would resonate with what we’ve outlined here. https://purposefulplanninginstitute.com
Bottom line, time and intentional effort need to be present to get a better result. Don’t expect a short “sales” interview with an estate planning attorney and their boilerplate documents to solve the complex issue of planning your legacy. Lean into the conversations, ask open ended questions, and take your time to set things up to foster thriving.