Legacy Planning in Alpharetta, GA
Give your family a clear understanding of what you want your wealth to make possible.
FEE-ONLY · FIDUCIARY · INDEPENDENT RIA · MARC DANER, CFP®, ChFC® · 30+ YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
Who Will Receive Your Money and Property?
You may want to give some of your money or property to family, friends, or a charity, either during your life or after your death. Legacy planning helps you decide who will receive it and what you want it to do for them. For example, you might help an adult child buy a home now, leave money for a grandchild’s education, or provide ongoing support for a family member with a disability.
At Daner Wealth Management, we help you work out how much you can afford to give while keeping enough for your own retirement and other needs. We then coordinate with your estate attorney so the financial decisions fit the legal arrangements in your estate plan.
Giving During Your Life or Leaving an Inheritance
A lifetime gift lets you see someone use the money. It also reduces what remains available for your retirement, healthcare, and other needs. Before deciding on a gift, consider whether you would still be comfortable if spending increased or investment returns were lower than expected.
Leaving an inheritance preserves access to the assets during your lifetime. It also means the timing and amount are less certain for the person expecting to receive them. A family member’s needs may change before the gift arrives.
These choices can be combined. A modest gift now and a later inheritance may serve your intentions better than making the entire transfer at once.
Equal Shares Can Have Different Consequences
Dividing an estate into equal dollar amounts does not necessarily give each recipient the same usable value. A traditional IRA, a taxable investment account, and an interest in a family property come with different tax and practical considerations.
Taxable withdrawals from an inherited traditional IRA generally count as income to the beneficiary. Many adult children must empty an inherited IRA by the end of the tenth year after the owner’s death; annual withdrawals may also be required, and exceptions apply. Property may take time to sell or require continuing expenses.
The aim is to understand those differences before choosing who receives which asset. Earlier gifts also deserve attention if you want them taken into account when deciding what each person receives later.
Help Your Family Understand the Decisions
You may not want to share every account balance. You can still explain the purpose of a gift, who will have responsibility for managing it, and what you hope it will support.
If your children will receive different assets or amounts, a conversation can give them context they would not find in a beneficiary form. If a family member is expected to manage money for someone else, discuss that responsibility before relying on them to accept it.
A written explanation of your intentions can help preserve that context. It does not replace the legal documents that direct how assets are managed and distributed. Your attorney should address any instructions that need to be legally binding.
Keep the Plan Connected to Your Life
A marriage, divorce, death, new grandchild, or change in a family member’s needs can alter a decision that once made sense. Selling a business or receiving an inheritance may change what you can comfortably give.
Daner’s role is to connect these decisions to the rest of your finances, including the income and reserves you need yourself. The plan should reflect both the people you want to help and the life you still intend to live.
How We’re Paid
As a fee-only firm, our primary service is comprehensive financial planning and investment management for an annual fee based on the assets we manage, generally around 1% on a tiered scale. For prospective clients who are considering our ongoing wealth management services but aren't ready to commit, we also offer the option of developing an initial comprehensive financial plan for a one-time, flat fee. We don't earn commissions from selling investment or insurance products. We'll walk you through exactly what that means for your situation before you commit to anything.
Why Choose Daner Wealth Management
Marc Daner, CFP®, ChFC®, has helped families organize what they leave behind as part of a full financial picture for more than 30 years. As an independent, fee-only fiduciary, we're required by law to act in your best interest, not selling products or earning commissions. We explain your options in plain language and stay with you as your plan evolves.
Questions About Legacy Planning
Legacy planning focuses on the purpose of your wealth and the decisions you want your family to understand. Estate planning supplies the legal and financial arrangements for carrying out your wishes. The two work together: intentions need workable arrangements, and the arrangements should serve a clear purpose.
Read more about how your financial plan supports your family legacy.
Yes. You may want to support a partner, relatives, friends, or charitable organizations. You also need to consider who could manage your affairs if you became unable to do so. A legacy plan can reflect those relationships without assuming there will be children to inherit or take responsibility.
Review the consequences before making the transfer. For a later gain, a recipient of gifted investments generally takes over the donor’s adjusted tax basis. Inherited property generally receives a basis tied to its value at death, subject to exceptions. Your own financial needs, the recipient’s circumstances, and the reason for the gift matter alongside the tax comparison.
