When to Use a Family LLC

Most people have heard about LLCS, but you might not be aware of the best situations to use them when it comes to your family. Essentially, a family LLC is an estate planning tool for holding assets or transferring them to succeeding generations.

The people most likely to use a family LLC are those individuals who want to keep family assets together and intact, managed only by a limited number of people. As an LLC manager, you’re in control while you’re alive, but you can also exercise control in selecting who will manage the LLC after you pass away.

If your family has rental real estate, it’s a good option to use a family LLC. You can manage it during your lifetime, and then at your death a portion of the LLC managing that real estate goes to your children. This limits the opportunity for children to argue after you have passed away about who is entitled to what.

Another benefit of a family LLC is that you can gift it during your lifetime. Without having to worry about other members signing off on your decisions, you can sell, lease, or buy assets while you are still alive. This gives you control while you are still present with opportunities for your heirs to manage the LLC after you are gone.

Interested in learning more about Family LLCs or other family entities? Send us an email at info@lawesq.net or contact us via phone at 732-521-9455.

How to Plan for, or Avoid, Transfer Taxes

As a recent article suggests, estate planning encompasses a lot more than most people would think. Not only does estate planning allow you to structure the final distribution of your assets upon your death, but it also allows you to provide for the management of your assets during life, plan for the care of your children, and make important decisions about what kind of medical care you would like to receive at the end of your life. Although estate planning encompasses all of these things, most people come to the table with an overwhelming goal of avoiding transfer taxes, namely Estate Taxes, Inheritance Taxes and Gift Taxes.

There are plenty of ways that estate planning can be used to minimize the tax liability an estate will face after the owner’s death. In many situations, it is possible to plan for zero estate taxes. Some strategies involve giving up control of certain assets. For example, a person could zero out their tax liability by setting up a charitable trust. Others, such as Family LLCs (FLLCs) and Family Limited Partnerships (FLPs) allow owners to maintain more control..

For the ultra-wealthy, there are many sophisticated asset transfer mechanisms that can be used to avoid transfer taxes. These mechanisms include foreign grantor trusts, dynasty trusts and private placement trusts. Again, these mechanisms often mean that a person has limited or no access to the assets within the trusts.

For those who want to maintain full control of their assets, life insurance is another way to provide money for anticipated taxes. These policies are often used to provide quick cash for a person’s heirs to pay any taxes and fees on the estate.