Keep it in the family

Over 630,000 family estates have seen a significant drop in asset values since the downturn in July 2007. Taking into account the fall in property markets and equities, this equates to almost £1billion being wiped from potential inheritances. While some clients may be waiting for property prices and asset values to recover before considering their estate planning, they could actually be benefitting from significant tax savings by planning their inheritance now and utilising depressed asset values. The traditional way of safeguarding assets from IHT is gifting them to the intended benefi...