The term “Family Office” is often misunderstood, so what does it mean? What does it specifically mean to your family and why is it important?
Parents often put money aside when their children are small and start to invest funds for the future. The strategy can be to diversify the family’s interests so that not all your eggs are in one basket.
Family Office places structure around your investments for the future and ensures that you are asked to consider the important questions:
- What are your family values?
- What is your vision for the future?
- In 10 years, what will a good position look like?
Why set up a family office?
Currently, we see in Australia a rise in “Accidental Family Office”. This is where a family may acquire assets outside their family business and in many instances start with property, but they don’t consider the best structure for the future. They adopt an entity that makes tax sense and years down the track, when they consider how they want to support the next generation, they restructure.
What we advocate at Grant Thornton, is having an advisor who asks you to visualise your future as well as providing you with a structure to successfully achieve your family goals.
Our role
At Grant Thornton, we ensure you have a tax structure in place to achieve your family’s vision for the future. As you plan for your family’s future and you consider education for the youngest generation, as well as assisting family members to enter the property market, you will also need to consider asset protection and estate planning with your vision for the future.
Traditionally, as accountants, we have been required to provide statutory financial statements by legal entity but in Family Office, we report from a family lens. We focus on market value, not cost, and provide a snapshot of overall family wealth, as well as reports on the growth in family wealth so you can track how you are progressing in achieving your family goals.
Contact your local advisor and find out more about Family Office start up.
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