Succession Planning

If you’re the owner of a family business, retirement is a little more complicated than simply filling out paperwork. Let’s face it. It’s not a matter of staying home instead of going to the office. It’s about planning for your company’s future. You’ve worked hard making your family business into what it is today. You want the best for your company and our team wants to help your business get there by finding smart solutions. Our team provides Succession Planning to help transition your family business to the next generation of entrepreneurs.

In order to reach retirement, you have some critical questions to answer. What happens to the business when you’re no longer running it? Will you have enough money to retire? The answers to these questions may make or break your retirement plan.

The Family Dynamic

Succession planning should be a priority for any family business, especially as the owner approaches the retirement age. At Jones, Savarese, Harrington & Company, we know this can be a delicate topic. The family dynamic often complicates the whole transition because relationships and emotions are involved. Many people are also uncomfortable discussing topics such as aging, death, and financial affairs.

Our advisors simply want to see your business succeed while you enjoy retirement. Let’s put this into perspective. More than seven out of 10 family-owned businesses fail to survive the transition from founder to second generation. These businesses typically fall prey to estate taxes or family discord– or both.

Developing and implementing a well-designed succession plan is essential to the survival of a family business from one generation to the next. Jones, Savarese, Harrington & Company is more than just a public accounting firm. We are a trusted financial advisor who can help your company navigate all the details of succession planning with our vast financial, small business and tax accounting expertise.

We can help you find answers to these key questions:

  • Are you going to pass the business onto your family or sell it to a third party?
    We help you weigh the advantages and disadvantages of each of these options.

  • Who’s going to run the business when you’re gone?
    Management and ownership are not one and the same. You may decide to transfer management of your business to just one of your children but transfer equal shares of business ownership to all your children, whether they’re actively involved in the business or not.

  • How can you minimize the tax bite?
    When transitioning a family business, the tax burden can be significant. The challenge is that a family business is not generally a liquid asset, but taxes are typically due when ownership is transferred.

  • How can you make it fair?
    Transferring family ownership often adds a tremendous amount of stress to individual family members. We talk with each of the family members to ensure that they feel they are getting an equitable and fair share of the pie.

Jones, Savarese, Harrington & Company will begin constructing your succession plan focusing on these 5 issues:
  1. Business Valuation
  2. Business Restructuring
  3. Tax Consequences
  4. Retirement Projections
  5. Tax Projections

Ready to talk?

Give us a call or email us to set up your business consultation today!

Let’s Talk