Year-End Legacy Planning, Wealth Transfer, and the Power of Philanthropy: Insights from Our Recent Webinar

At Mission Wealth, we are committed to helping you navigate the complexities of financial planning and empowering you to make a positive impact on the world. In our recent webinar discussion, Director of Philanthropic Strategy, Amanda Thomas, and Director of Estate Strategy, Andrew Kulha, shared valuable insights that will shape your financial and philanthropic journey.

The goal of the strategy webinar is to help our clients understand how to approach family legacy planning for their estate planning and actionable ideas for how to incorporate philanthropy into legacy planning.

Watch the Full Webinar Below:

Download the charts and slide deck from the webinar.

Legacy Planning: Beyond Wealth Transfer

Legacy planning is the process of carefully crafting a plan for the future that reflects your values, wishes, and aspirations. While it certainly involves the transfer of financial assets to your heirs, it goes beyond mere wealth distribution. Legacy planning allows you to pass down your core values, beliefs, and life lessons to the next generation. It ensures that your family understands what matters most to you and how you want them to carry forward your legacy.

A unique way to carry forward your values in giving is organizing teaching moments such as utilizing tools like Gift 4 Giving, where you can give your children a portion of your gifting account or DAF and your children can decide which charity or charities they can give to.

Effective Estate Planning: Safeguarding Your Family’s Future

Andrew explored effective estate planning techniques that seamlessly transfer wealth to future generations and explained the differences between two popular charitable trusts, CRUTs and CLATs.

Charitable Remainder Unitrust A charitable remainder unitrust (CRUT) is an estate planning tool that generates income for a beneficiary for the term of the trust and donates the remaining trust to balance a charity at the end of the trust term.

Charitable Lead Annuity Trust A charitable lead annuity trust (CLAT) is an irrevocable split-interest trust that provides for a specified amount to be paid to one or more charitable beneficiaries during the term of the trust with the remainder going to individual beneficiaries at the end of the trust term.

But estate planning is more than just paperwork. It involves open and effective communication with your family about your wishes and intentions. Andrew and Amanda shared strategies for navigating these crucial family discussions, ensuring that your loved ones understand and respect your wishes.

The Transformative Power of Philanthropy

The highlight of our discussion was the transformative power of philanthropy. We believe that charitable giving can make a meaningful impact on the causes you hold dear. Amanda and Andrew introduced the world of philanthropy and how it can become an integral part of your financial journey.

Philanthropy allows you to leave a legacy that transcends financial wealth. By contributing to causes you’re passionate about, you derive a sense of fulfillment and purpose in knowing that your resources are making a difference. Involving your family in philanthropic discussions can be a unifying and educational experience.

Tools to Utilize When Researching Charities

Many of our clients are charitably inclined but may not know where to start to identify the appropriate charities and causes aligned with their beliefs and objectives. Amanda shared a few of her favorite tools for clients to better research charities and causes that align with their beliefs and desired philanthropic goals. Below are her recommendations:

guidestar.org

charitywatch.org

charitynavigator.org

fidelitycharitable.org

schwabcharitable.org

Tax Benefits of Effective Planning

Philanthropic giving can offer significant tax advantages, both during your lifetime and as part of your estate plan. It can help reduce estate taxes and maximize the impact of your charitable contributions.

Donor-Advised Funds A donor-advised fund, or DAF, is a charitable giving vehicle, generally, a separately identified fund or account, administered by a third party (a 501(c)(3) organization, your charity) that allows you to make an irrevocable contribution to that fund and be eligible for an immediate tax deduction.

Is bunching right for you? Donors may find they can maximize their tax benefits by using what’s called a “bunching” strategy. Bunching means concentrating several years’ worth of your charitable contributions into one year, itemizing deductions that year to benefit from extra tax savings, then taking the standard deduction in the other years. Use Schwab Charitable’s bunching calculator to run your numbers.

Qualified Charitable Distribution A qualified charitable distribution, or QCD, is a direct tax-free withdrawal from your IRA to the qualified charity (or charities) of your choice. Since the amount of your RMD, which would normally be considered taxable income, is sent directly to the charity and does not pass through your hands, it is not included in your taxable income for the year.

How Mission Wealth Can Assist You

We have a team of dedicated financial advisors ready to assist you in implementing the insights from our discussion. Whether you want to optimize your year-end financial planning, secure your family’s financial future through effective estate planning, or embark on a transformative philanthropic journey, we are here to guide you every step of the way.

Contact Mission Wealth today to take the first step toward leaving a meaningful legacy for your family and contributing to the greater good through strategic philanthropy. Your financial journey can be both fulfilling and impactful, and we’re here to help make it happen.