A webinar entitled “Estate Planning for Your Family and Farm” will be held Thursday, Jan. 26, at the Lincoln County Service Center, 801 N. Sales St., Merrill, in Room 156 on the lower level. This webinar is the fifth in a series of webinars from UW-Extension that will focus on a variety of farm succession topics. This two-hour webinar begins at 1 p.m.
Farm business owners looking to the future of their farming operations have many issues to consider. Succession planning includes planning for the owner generation’s later years; business planning to ensure the operation has financial capacity; developing the successor’s management skills; and estate and tax planning.
Estate planning needs to happen whether or not there will be a business succession. Careful consideration of the owners’ goals and the tools available is important to develop the right plan.
This webinar is for both the owner and successor generations to learn about estate planning tools and how to develop a plan with the help of estate planning professionals. If a business succession is involved, it is important to ensure the business assets are available in some way for the incoming business successor. Bridget Finke, an attorney with Valley Crossing Law in Baldwin, WI, will lead the webinar and topics include:
•Lifetime planning: powers of attorney for health care and finances, living wills and advanced directives;
•Choosing the estate planning vehicle that is right for your family: wills, trusts, transfer on death designations and other estate planning tools to consider;
•Tax consequences of death: estate taxes and stepped-up basis; and
•How to get started with estate planning.
Preregistration is required. The fee is $5 per farm per webinar to cover the costs of the webinar and materials. Contact the Lincoln County UW-Extension office to register 715-539-1072.
The farm succession webinar series continues through early spring of 2017. If you have any questions regarding the agricultural lease webinar or any of the future webinars please contact Dan Marzu, Agricultural Development Educator, at 715-539-1072.