As part of AdvisorOne's Special Report, 22 Days of Tax Planning Advice for 2012, throughout the month of March, advisor and regular AdvisorOne blogger Mike Patton is sharing how he handles tax planning in his practice.
I had a friend approach me recently about a situation involving his parents. Basically, his parent had sold their business and it was suggested to them by an advisors that they place the proceeds in a Special Needs Trust in a western state. The goals of the parents? To reduce their federal estate tax, avoid state income tax, avoid probate, and take advantage of generational gifting (i.e.; not running afoul of the generation skippikng tax). In short, this trust would accomplish the clients' goals, but is it the right thing for the client? Is there a better way?
The advisor who recommended this approach has a specialty working with these trusts (that provided clue No. 1 to me), and because the tax law is scheduled to change at the end of 2012, he had created a sense of urgency (Clue #2). Again, though this trust would accomplish all of the clients' goals, there are other questions that should have been asked. But first, let's examine the aforementioned clues.
Clue #1: The Specialist
When an advisor has a specialty, and that's all they do, the potential exists that the advisor is more salesman than advisor. After all, if that's all they do, if they don't do much of it, they won't be around for long. My issue is with his process. For example, did the advisor gain a thorough understanding of the clients' overall financial picture? In other words, did he take a complete inventory of the clients' wealth and/or create a comprehensive financial plan? No. Why is this important? In this particular case, the client would be transferring just under half of their net worth to this irrevocable trust. Would this leave the client enough money to maintain their standard of living?
Clue #2: The Urgency
The advisor attempted to create a sense of urgency to my friends' parents by telling them that the maximum gift tax exemption is scheduled to be reduced after this year. True, the current $5 million exemption will fall to $1 million if Congress fails to act this year. But does the client need to take action now? Couldn't they wait until later this year?
