How High-Net-Worth Families Can Protect Wealth for the Next Generation | The Informed Investor 54 Video
The Informed InvestorShow Notes
Episode 54: Do you have a plan for your wealth? And, if so, are you prepared to share that plan with your family?
These questions are especially important for high-net-worth families.
When millions of dollars are at stake, a family wealth plan should help address how the money will be invested for growth and preservation of capital—as well as how much can be spent safely, gifted to younger generations, and dedicated to philanthropy.
Sensible stuff. Yet Nirav Batavia, Co-Managing Partner at Forum, a financial advisory firm based near Chicago, says such plans should go beyond important financial details and guidelines. Family stories, values, and dreams should be included too.
"You can put in a lot of processes and a lot of frameworks, but it's not going to stick without the stories, the culture," he says. "How did that wealth get built? What happened to the great grandparents, the grandparents? How do you collect those stories and preserve them for future generations? It comes down to communication."
Put another way, family discussions are a key part of family wealth governance. But Batavia believes most wealthy families are not having those conversations as often as they should.
"The reality is a lot of us put a lot of effort into our business lives, into how we run our firms, how we build for the future, our career path," says Batavia, who has nearly 20 years of experience in financial services. "But a lot of times we don't put even 5% of that towards our family governance."
Intentionality drives governance, he says. Extensive family interaction is required, including age-appropriate sharing with kids. Working through difficult emotions may be necessary. Regular follow-ups then lead to ongoing adjustments as careers and wishes change, children become teens and adults, and portfolios increase in value.
In Episode 54 of The Informed Investor podcast, Dimensional's Mark Gochnour, Head of Global Client Services, picks Batavia's brain for tips on all the parameters of a family wealth plan that can last for generations.
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