As an owner of a business, you would have gone through many ups and downs to get it to where it is today so you wouldn’t want it to all go away at the blink of an eye, would you? Well, this is what could possibly happen if you haven’t secured your business through a will. It’s not something you’d want to think about but it will be an eventuality and if you don’t have a solid estate plan now it would be a good idea to get started on the process. This means you can be assured your assets will stay secure and be dispersed how you want them to when the unfortunate time comes around.
When is the right time to draft a will?
There isn’t a real answer to this as you won’t know exactly when to write it. However, it would be important to do it quite early once you begin to build assets that are extremely valuable. At the same time, you want it drafted late enough for all the assets you own to be covered. Some business owners tend to feel that they’re in the early days of their entrepreneurial venture, so feel they’re too early to create a will. The truth is it’s entirely up to the business owner when they wish to create it and their future plans.
Heirs need to be picked
An aspect of estate planning that needs to be greatly considered is who will be the heir to the business when you’re forced to step away. You want to make sure that it’s in the right hands and it can be led to success. At the same time, you also need to think about whether the heir you choose genuinely wants the business. This is where you need to ask yourself questions; who wants to take the reigns of the business? Are there many candidates that you can consider? What will the tax implications be? It’s a big decision to make so make sure you consider it carefully.
Plan ahead for tax purposes
When you come to write your will, there will be guidelines that you have to meet with tax when the business is transferred. This can be particularly important if you plan on writing your will around the same time you retire. For example, pension lifetime allowance shouldn’t be exceeded as more tax could be paid. Also, inheritance could be detrimental to those who the business is passed onto. A way you can avoid this is giving assets as presents during your lifetime with the business.
It can set goals
Writing a will means you can provide instructions on how you want the business to be run moving forward when you’re not present. For example, maintaining the ethos and structure of the business so that it can continue when you pass away. If these aspects are neglected, they could be damaging to the reputation of the business.
Maintaining the legacy of your business will be of major importance to you. In order for this to happen, get your will in place and consider how you wish for it to continue. For any support that you may require, you can always receive this from legal will writing solicitors Manchester based who will guide you through the correct structure and what to consider.