Week in Review – Rethink Your Legacy

This Week in Review:

Rethink Your Legacy

This Week:

  • Weekly Spotlight - Rethink Your Legacy
  • Market Snapshot
  • In Case You Missed It! —Our Quarterly Webinar and Outlook

Many people begin thinking about their legacy and estate plan around the same time they start seriously considering retirement—perhaps even later. Why wait? At Polaris, legacy planning begins further upstream—ideally as soon as we create your first financial plan. If we haven’t connected about this recently, let’s make sure we cover it in our next conversation. In the meantime, here are some key questions to help get you started.


    • What does legacy mean to you? Legacy is about more than just money. Sure, it often entails directing funds to your children or a charity—but there’s more. At its core, your legacy centers on how you want to be remembered. As a business builder? A philanthropist? A parent and spouse? For some people, it’s all of those things. Legacy is, in part, about the values you want to pass along to the next generation. Think about how you want to be remembered, and then let’s discuss how to make sure your financial plan supports that vision.
    • Can your legacy begin in your lifetime? Legacy planning is a bit of a misnomer because it isn’t necessarily about what you leave behind. In many cases, you can enjoy your legacy in your lifetime. Some of our clients want to keep their family close, so we discuss funding family vacations. Others hope to see the happiness in the eyes of the person they are helping, so we work with them to structure a charitable fund or a trust that starts giving immediately. Sometimes a person’s legacy is more about leaving the next generation financially secure down the line—they may be uncomfortable giving during their lifetime. Either way, our best guidance is to be intentional in your decision-making to ensure your strategy allows your legacy to unfold on your timeline.
    • What tools should you use? The idea is to help you create a legacy that delivers on your personal goals in the most tax-efficient manner possible. That may mean setting up a spousal lifetime access trust (SLAT) or a donor-advised fund (DAF)—or more likely a structured combination of strategies. The options (and acronyms) are extensive, but we’ll create an estate plan that meets your needs. We’ll also make sure your beneficiary information is updated and all of your estate documents are in place. Here’s much more on estate strategy.

Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts about legacy planning with us. It may be the most important conversation we have, and we’re ready to have it today.

Market & Economy Snapshot

A lackluster earnings report Tuesday from shipping giant United Parcel Service and a sizable $100 billion deposits deficit at the troubled First Republic Bank snapped a stretch of market calm, sending the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average down more than 1% each Tuesday—a relatively modest decline notable only in that it was the biggest drop for either index in more than a month.

While Amazon’s quarterly results were mixed, the picture was rosier for some of the tech titans that have propelled markets this year: Google parent Alphabet reported on its search business’ resilience (if companies anticipate cost cuts, one of the first items to go is often advertising, Google’s bread and butter). Microsoft’s sales and profits also exceeded expectations with still-robust spending by businesses.

More than one-third of S&P 500 companies have reported first-quarter earnings as of Thursday morning, with 81% beating analyst expectations. That’s above a long-term average of 73%.

Next week, it’s all eyes on the Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting (starting May 2), after which we’ll parse the central bank’s interest-rate-policy announcement and analysis of current economic conditions.

In Case You Missed It—Our Quarterly Webinar and Outlook

Our second-quarter webinar—The 2023 Dilemma: Financial Planning in the Face of Inflation and Interest-Rate Uncertainty—features Chief Investment Officer Tim Clift and Head of Wealth Management Steve Reder covering a wide range of financial planning and investment topics, as well as our outlook for the months ahead. Click here to watch the replay!

This quarter, we’ve spotlighted the five themes we think will have the greatest impact on the markets in the months ahead, and we’ve laid out the planning-first philosophy we’re taking to help you achieve your goals and manage financial risks. Click here to read our second-quarter 2023 Polaris Outlook.

Remember to visit www.polariswealth.com for our timely and ongoing wealth management commentary.

Please note: This update was prepared on Friday, April 28, 2023, prior to the market’s close.

This material is distributed for informational purposes only. The investment ideas and opinions contained herein should not be viewed as recommendations or personal investment advice or considered an offer to buy or sell specific securities. Data and statistics contained in this report are obtained from what we believe to be reliable sources; however, their accuracy, completeness or reliability cannot be guaranteed.

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