Trusts and Estate Planning

At Arnold Greenwood we do not believe in bombarding our clients with 'one size fits all' estate planning schemes. Instead we tailor our estate planning advice to meet your specific needs. What matters most to us is that the planning you undertake is appropriate to you, your family and your level of understanding.

We know from experience that trusts created during your lifetime and by your Will have a very useful part to play in everyday life. A trust can provide for everything from the grandparent that has spare funds to invest for their grandchildren's future right through to tax planning to ensure that family wealth passes through the generations rather than unnecessarily to HM Revenue & Customs.

Trusts are just one way of planning your finances to minimise Inheritance Tax. There are many others but, as is so often the case in tax planning, the sooner you start to consider the issues and act upon them the better. Some of the options we can discuss with you to reduce your liability to inheritance tax and so maximise the benefit passing to your family include:

• Making lifetime gifts
• Making use of the inheritance tax reliefs for business and agricultural property
• Making use of the exempt transfers available on death such as the Nil Rate Band, gifts to charities etc
• Making a will

Planning for the future also means thinking about our lives and loved ones as we grow older. Inevitably as we get older we are more likely to suffer from ill-health but in fact anyone of us can become mentally incapable at any time as the result of a sudden accident or illness. If we lose the capacity to look after our finances and personal welfare without planning for this event, however remote the possibility may seem, this can put an unnecessary financial and emotional burden upon those closest to us.

By executing a Lasting Power of Attorney it is possible to pass on to people you trust the ability to deal with both your finances and your welfare without burdening them with expensive and time consuming court applications.

Our expertise lies in listening to your problem and offering the solution that best fits your particular circumstances both at that time and those that it is possible you may face in the future.

For further information, please contact Richard Scrimshaw on 01539 720049 and a member of our Wills, Trusts & Probate department will respond to your enquiry as soon as possible.