Planning for Business Owners

  • What tax-saving strategies are available to you?
  • Which retirement account(s) should you use for your business?
  • Regarding your personal finances, are you missing any opportunities or making any mistakes given your busy schedule?
  • How much longer do they need to work, and how much can they spend?
  • What’s the best way to pay for college for their children?
  • What value do they need to sell their business for to not have to work again?
  • Have they implemented a disciplined investment strategy to help their money work for them instead of working for it?
  • Are their estate documents set up correctly for their heirs and to minimize any estate tax?

 

The Situation

Tyler and Lauren own a business together, and they have four children. They haven’t had the time to dedicate to their finances in the past, and now they are left with a lot of questions about how they can get their financial lives in order.

 

Planning

Some possible recommendations for this situation (depending on their personal circumstances) may include:

  • A financial plan will help Tyler and Lauren determine how much longer they need to work, how much money they can spend, and are they missing any opportunities. We can run through different scenarios to see which has the best outcome for their situation including evaluating different business exit valuations.
  • Reviewing potential tax-saving strategies for Tyler & Lauren, including are they using the right business structure (S-Corp, C-Corp, LLC, etc.), maximizing their Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction, and selecting the right retirement account(s) (e.g. 401k, SEP IRA, Simple IRA, etc.) for tax efficiency.
  • When evaluating whether to sell their business determining the appropriate exit valuation to help them reach their goals.
  • To maximize long-term investment returns, implement a disciplined investment strategy across all their accounts including how much risk to take, what holdings to own, tax efficiency, and ongoing monitoring for opportunistic rebalancing.
  • Review estate documents to determine whether they are set up correctly.  Evaluate whether a trust is needed and if more advanced estate planning strategies are necessary to minimize future estate taxes.
  • To pay for college for their children, Tyler and Lauren can invest in a 529 account (here’s a list of 7 ways that you can use a 529 account) or other options. In addition to investing in a 529 for their children, they may be eligible for a complicated tax strategy where they’d gift appreciated stock to them.
  • Reviewing their amount of life, disability, and umbrella insurance to confirm they have enough given their unique situation.

 

Implementation and Monitoring

  • Save time by utilizing our Wealth Management service to make sure everything gets done, avoid missed opportunities or big mistakes.  Additional benefits of this service include:
    • Reviewing the financial plan regularly to provide peace of mind that you are ok.
    • Ongoing monitoring of your investment, cash flow, and estate situation for opportunities.
    • Assistance setting up a 401(k) or another retirement plan for the business.
    • Annual tax planning to maximize tax efficiency.
    • Click here to get additional details regarding the different small business retirement plan options including eligibility, contribution limits, timing, etc.