Estate planning

Effective estate planning aims to distribute the wealth you’ve built over your life according to your wishes, in a tax efficient way. When planning how you’ll pass on your estate, you’re likely to have a set of personal priorities that need to be considered, planned for and structured methodically.

Estate planning is a complex area of financial planning that requires careful and diligent advice. We can help by making the process as clear as possible, giving you the confidence to make the right decisions and feel in control.

With changes to tax and trusts legislation taking place from time to time, we recommend working with a trusted adviser to put into place the appropriate structures. The sooner you create an estate planning strategy, the more choices and flexibility you are likely to have, even if things change later in life.

Reducing the effects of Inheritance Tax (IHT) to make sure that your family and any other beneficiaries enjoy the best possible outcome is important for many people. There are a number of HMRC approved methods that you can use to help reduce your IHT liability, including: gifting assets or a portion of your income during your lifetime, investing in funds that qualify for IHT relief, establishing trusts, effectively using inheritance tax allowances, taking out protection policies or donating money to charity.

We can help you put in place a plan that meets your specific requirements and that minimises the amount of IHT you are liable for.

We can help by:

• Ensuring you maximise your annual tax-free allowances.

• Advising you on taking out adequate protection policies that could help to minimise IHT.

• Using our expertise in investment management, we’ll help build a tailored investment portfolio to meet your wealth legacy objectives.

• Setting up a range of structures for efficient transfer of assets to your beneficiaries.

We understand there is a lot to consider when estate planning and will always take into consideration your overall financial requirements before making any recommendations. Your will is a key part of your estate planning so we suggest writing up a will to be your first step in estate planning. It sets out what you want to happen after your death, dealing not only with passing on your wealth, but also with many other important aspects. By planning for wealth transfer as early on as possible, you’re likely to have more options to consider.

Managing wealth transfer and reducing inheritance tax liabilities requires a holistic, flexible approach which we can offer with our estate planning service. We make sure you have an appropriate plan in place that efficiently passes your wealth to the next generation, whilst ensuring you have the flexibility to retain wealth if your financial requirements change.

We provide all the elements you need to protect, grow and pass on your wealth, combining them through a complete approach.

This is what you gain by partnering with us:

• A dedicated, long-term and trusted relationship with an adviser.

• The support of a team of in-house experts for any complex financial planning needs as well as tax-efficient and specialist investments.

• A highly-qualified and experienced team of investment professionals to support any investment requirements from your financial plan.

• A demonstrable track record of outperforming clients’ expectations.

• Confidence through independent recognition for our service.

And as our client, you can rely on:

• A service designed to provide you with clarity and confidence in your financial future.

• Our commitment to put your interests first and provide a truly individual service tailored to your specific needs.

• The peace of mind that comes from understanding and feeling understood.

• Strong administrative support with a focus on first class client service.