Estate Planning
Why Estate Planning Matters
Preserve your legacy, protect your family
Estate planning isn’t just for the wealthy. It’s about making intentional decisions now to protect your assets, your loved ones, and your wishes—both during your lifetime and after. A thoughtful estate plan ensures your assets are distributed the way you want, helps avoid unnecessary legal complications, and can reduce tax burdens for your heirs. For families and individuals across North Carolina and Virginia, estate planning is a foundational part of building long-term financial security. We believe that everyone with assets, responsibilities, or loved ones should have a plan in place.
Our Role in the Estate Planning Process
Coordinating strategies that align with your overall financial plan
As financial advisors, we work closely with your estate attorney and other professionals to help ensure your estate plan fits seamlessly within your broader financial picture. That includes reviewing your beneficiary designations, coordinating asset titling, and helping structure plans for multigenerational wealth transfer. We don’t draft legal documents, but we play a key role in helping you clarify your intentions, identify potential gaps, and ensure your plan reflects your goals. Our goal is to bring clarity and organization to a process that’s often delayed or overlooked.
Key Elements of an Estate Plan
Coordinating strategies to support your goals
A comprehensive estate plan includes several important components. We help you identify what’s needed and ensure each piece works with your overall financial plan.
Wills and Trusts
Establishing legal instructions for asset distribution and, when appropriate, using trusts to manage or transfer wealth.
Powers of Attorney
Naming trusted individuals to handle financial or healthcare decisions if you become unable to do so yourself.
Beneficiary Coordination
Making sure your account and policy designations match your intentions and avoid unnecessary complications.
Legacy Planning
Creating strategies to transfer wealth to heirs or charitable organizations in a way that reflects your values.
Tax Awareness
Working with tax professionals to structure plans that minimize potential estate tax impact where applicable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need estate planning if I’m not wealthy?
Estate planning is valuable for anyone who has assets, family members, or specific wishes for how their affairs should be handled. It’s not limited to high-net-worth families—having even a simple plan can help your loved ones avoid unnecessary stress and legal complications. Creating an estate plan ensures clarity and gives you control over important decisions regardless of the size of your estate.
How does estate planning fit with my financial plan?
An estate plan works best when it’s integrated with your broader financial strategy. We coordinate account titling, beneficiary designations, and asset distribution with your retirement, tax, and investment plans. This alignment helps ensure that everything works together and that no key details are overlooked as your plan develops over time.
Do you create legal documents for estate planning?
We do not draft legal documents, but we work closely with estate attorneys who handle that aspect. Our role is to coordinate the financial elements, make sure assets are titled properly, and ensure your financial plan supports the legal documents you create. This collaboration keeps your estate and financial plans consistent and aligned.
What’s the difference between a will and a trust?
A will outlines your wishes for distributing assets and can name guardians for children, but it goes through probate. A trust can help assets transfer outside probate and may manage them during incapacity. Many people use both together to create a complete estate plan, and we can help you coordinate which approach works best with your overall financial goals.
How often should I update my estate plan?
Your estate plan should be reviewed whenever major life events occur, such as marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, or significant changes in assets. Even without big changes, reviewing it every few years helps ensure it still reflects your wishes and current laws. Keeping it up to date provides ongoing clarity and peace of mind for you and your family.
