Estate, Wealth & Business Transition Planning

Major wealth decisions rarely happen in isolation. A business transition, real estate sale, inheritance, gifting plan or liquidity event can affect taxes, ownership, estate documents, cash flow and investment decisions at the same time. Cromwell Wealth Strategies helps organize the tax and financial picture and coordinate the questions that should be addressed before important decisions are finalized.

One decision can involve several professionals. Someone still needs to connect the pieces.

Attorneys, investment professionals, insurance advisers, business brokers and CPAs each bring different expertise. The challenge for the client is often understanding how the recommendations interact. Cromwell Wealth Strategies helps frame the tax and financial consequences, identify unresolved questions and coordinate the planning conversation so the client can make a more informed decision.

Plan the ownership transition before the handoff.

A business transition can involve income tax, estate tax, valuation, ownership, cash flow, family relationships and legal agreements. Early planning creates more time to understand those moving parts and determine which professionals should be involved.

• Business succession and ownership-transition planning
• Sale, transfer or family-transition tax considerations
• Owner cash-flow and liquidity analysis
• Coordination with buy-sell, shareholder or operating-agreement counsel
• Pre-sale and post-sale tax planning
• Coordination with valuation, insurance and investment professionals when appropriate

Coordinate the tax and financial side of estate planning.

Estate planning is legal work, but the decisions behind the documents often depend on tax, cash flow, asset ownership and family goals. Cromwell Wealth Strategies can help clients organize the financial information and planning questions that should be considered with their estate attorney.

• Asset and ownership review
• Gifting and transfer-tax considerations
• Business and real estate ownership coordination
• Liquidity and projected tax obligations
• Beneficiary and ownership questions to coordinate with legal counsel
• Financial modeling to support estate-planning decisions

A large liquidity event changes more than the bank balance.

The sale of a business or property, a concentrated asset disposition, an inheritance or another major liquidity event can create immediate tax obligations and long-term financial decisions. Planning before the event can help the client understand what may be available for reinvestment, gifting, debt reduction, reserves and future goals after taxes are considered.

• Projected tax and after-tax proceeds
• Estimated-tax and liquidity planning
• Capital-gain strategy before the transaction
• Charitable and gifting coordination where appropriate
• Cash-reserve and reinvestment considerations
• Coordination with the client's investment adviser

Real estate often sits at the center of family wealth.

Commercial property, rental real estate and family-owned property can involve income tax, capital gains, depreciation, financing, ownership entities, succession and estate considerations. The planning process should consider both the property itself and how it fits into the owner's broader financial and family picture.

• Ownership and entity review
• Sale, exchange and transfer considerations
• Family or successor ownership questions
• Debt and cash-flow implications
• Coordination with estate counsel and other advisers
• Tax modeling before a significant property decision

The conversation is most useful before the documents and transaction are final.

• You are planning to sell or transition a business.
• You are deciding how to transfer ownership to family or partners.
• You are preparing for an estate-planning meeting and want the tax and financial picture organized first.
• You expect a large capital gain, inheritance or liquidity event.
• You own real estate or business interests that create estate or succession complexity.
• Several advisers are involved, but you need help connecting the tax and financial consequences.

CPA-led coordination, not legal drafting or investment management.

Cromwell Wealth Strategies provides tax, accounting and financial analysis and advisory services. Estate documents, trusts, wills, legal agreements, securities advice, investment management and insurance products are handled by the appropriately licensed professionals. Our role is to help the client understand the tax and financial implications and coordinate the questions that should be resolved with those professionals.

Chad Cromwell, CPA has more than 20 years of experience working with business owners, investors and families across tax, accounting, real estate, business ownership and financial decisions. He brings the perspective of both a CPA and former business owner, including the experience of building and selling his own CPA practice. That combination is particularly useful when tax, business and family decisions overlap.

Facing a business, estate or wealth transition with several moving parts?

Start with a confidential conversation. We can identify the tax and financial questions, determine who else should be involved, and help organize the path forward.