Category: Articles

Regardless of the business cycle stage your company finds itself, it is likely that on a day-to-day basis as a business owner your mind is focused either on ensuring customer satisfaction or taking care of your employees in some way. It’s possible, a financial advisor or your attorney mentioned a buy-sell agreement at some point. But if the topic even momentarily grabbed your attention, it is unlikely it made any lasting impression on you and even more doubtful that it spurred you into action. Unfortunately, this is all too commonplace because of the investment of time and money most business owners assume is involved- to say nothing of the general avoidance associated with subjects a buy-sell addresses, like death and disability. Let’s dive deeper into what a buy-sell agreement does and why you should have one.

A financial plan has many important pieces, but the client’s ability to earn an income is what makes everything else possible. People insure their homes, cars and other personal property, yet they fail to insure the one thing that makes all these possible: their income. For the majority of people, their ability to get up and go to work everyday is their greatest asset. In terms of present value, many people do not realize that their lifetime earning potential can far exceed that of properties or investments they own.

As we transitioned from in-person and telephone meetings in the post-pandemic world to Zoom and other forms of virtual meetings, there was a significant degree of concern in whether, as financial advisors, we would be able to continue to effectively communicate with our clients. What we learned was that not only would we be able to continue to provide effective guidance, but that we would be taught several valuable lessons in how to be better communicators going forward.

One of the cornerstone goals of most financial plans for the successful entrepreneur is to eventually transfer some of the value of their life’s work and identity to the next generation without their wealth being unnecessarily eroded by the federal and/or state estate tax. Currently, this exemption sits at $11.58 million per individual or a combined $22m+ per couple, leaving only a small percentage of successful estates potential subject to this tax.

Combined with the ability to gift $30,000 annually (for married couples splitting gifts) to any number of defined beneficiaries without applying against the lifetime exemption, clients often forget the changing tides of the estate tax exemption may force them into a vastly differently situation down the line during times of legislative change….