Page 24 - Pakistan Link - November 15, 2019

P24 – PAKISTAN LINK – NOVEMBER 15, 2019 COMMENTARY
Estate Planning Strategies: How to Support Hidaya Schools

Match Your Plan to Your Priorities

n By Saghir Aslam sary accounting skills, sales aptitude, Due to corruption, mis-
Rawalpindi, Pakistan customer service skills, or other re- management and poverty,
quirements to eff ectively run the busi- the state of schools in Hidaya is currently
ness if you give them responsibility in economically depressed operating 45 schools
(Th e following information is those areas. areas of under-developed
provided solely to educate the Muslim Giving to charity countries are in a with over 5,000 students
community about in- Th e impact of a charitable dona- deplorable state. Hidaya from 1st to 8th grade in
vesting and fi nancial tion can be even greater if timed prop- opens schools in rural poverty stricken areas of
planning. It is hoped erly and if given from the proper type
that the Ummah will of asset in their estate. Prebish recalls a areas which have none Pakistan.
benefi t from this eff ort client who included a generous chari- to begin with, as well
through greater fi nan- table gift in her will. “Th e client left a as adopts and operates It costs about $160
cial empowerment, en- large IRA of similar value to the chil- “ghost schools” which to run a classroom of
abling the community to live with dig- dren,” he says. “We talked about the have been shut down. approximately 40 students
nity and fulfi ll their moral obligations to carry out the will or trust if that in- idea of doing just the opposite—leave each month.
towards charitable activities) formation is missing. the IRA to charity (because the char-
Consider these strategies for pro- Place too many limits regarding ity would not pay tax on distributions),
viding for your family, transitioning information you share with your exec- and leave other assets (that would get
your business, and giving to charity. utor or the trustee who will administer a step-up in cost basis to potentially
If you’ve dedicated some time to your estate. reduce capital gains taxes) to the chil-
estate planning, you may have some Transitioning your business dren.”
pretty good ideas about who should get “Estate planning can be challeng- Do
Donat
Donat
the house, family heirlooms, and your ing for families who own a business— Arrange the right timing for your Donate Zakat & Sadaqah to Support Hidaya Schoolse Zakat & Sadaqah to Support Hidaya Schoolse Zakat & Sadaqah to Support Hidaya Schools
401(k) plan or life insurance policy giving children the correct roles and charitable gift s. Your attorney, tax ad-
aft er you pass away. But did you plan making sure the roles are spelled out in visor, and fi nancial advisor can help
thoroughly enough? How confi dent do the plan,” Prebish says. you understand how you are impacted
you feel that your priorities and values He recalls working with a client by the increase in the standard deduc-
will truly be refl ected in your estate on a written estate plan when he spot- tion, and limits on deducting state in- FOUNDATION
plan? ted one big potential mistake: Owner- come taxes. Evaluate whether it would
Daniel Prebish, Director of Life ship in the business was going to be be benefi cial for you to “bunch” chari- 866.2.HIDAYA | www.hidaya.org | mail@hidaya.org
Event Services for Wells Fargo Advi- evenly divided among four children, table gift s into alternate years (possi- Hidaya Foundation is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) charitable organization with Tax ID # 77-0502583
sors in St. Louis, off ers important in- so the child who was designated for the bly using a charitable donor-advised
sights, including dos and don’ts, for CEO role would not have a majority of fund).
three common priorities of many es- voting shares. Th e children whom the If you have planned to make char- Exchange Rates for Currency Notes*
tate plans: providing for family, transi- owner viewed as “less capable” would itable bequests at death, consider mak-
tioning a business, and giving to char- actually be in control. With that in ing those gift s during your lifetime in-
ity. mind: stead. If you don’t expect to owe federal Countries Buying Selling
Providing for your family Do estate taxes, it might be more advanta- Rs. Rs.
Prebish says it can be a bit more Begin planning for this transition geous to get the potential income tax
complicated than signing your name as soon as possible to prepare children deduction available for lifetime gift s. USA 155.25 155.65
on the dotted line and fi ling away your for roles that fi t their capabilities. Th at Also, you get the personal satisfaction UK 199.00 201.50
documents for a future date. includes having a plan that eventu- that comes with making a positive dif- S.Arabia 41.20 41.50
“It’s really important to under- ally gives the child who is running the ference you can see before you’re gone. Japan 1.40 1.43
stand that simply signing a document business a majority of voting shares Don’t Euro 170.00 172.00
is not enough to assure that your wish- needed to run it properly. Make charitable gift s today that UAE 42.20 42.50
es will be carried out,” Prebish says. Make sure family values and busi- would jeopardize your future fi nancial
“Asset titling and benefi ciary designa- ness values are aligned. Does it make security or current income needs. (*November 13, 2019)
tions need to be consistent with your more sense to grow the business to the Give a noncash asset that the
will or living trust.” Also, if you die point where it can be sold, or can it be charity isn’t expecting or can’t easily
and a spouse or child is completely sur- sustained as a family business for gen- manage. An art collection, for example,
prised by your estate plan, that can lead erations? Whatever the overarching might be a welcome gift to a museum,
to problems and even litigation. With goal, be sure to communicate it to your but a burden to a food bank.
that in mind: children. (Saghir A. Aslam only explains
Do Don’t strategies and formulas that he has
Explain the general outline of Assume that at some point you been using. He is merely providing in-
your plan to family members ahead of will quit working but the kids will con- formation, and NO ADVICE is given.
time. tinue to pay you a salary. If the chil- Mr Aslam does not endorse or rec-
Confi rm that account ownership dren are not truly owners, they prob- ommend any broker, brokerage fi rm,
or benefi ciary designations are not at ably won’t learn how to operate like or any investment at all, nor does he
odds with your will or trust. For ex- successful entrepreneurs. Instead, says suggest that anyone will earn a profi t
ample, if you mean to divide assets Prebish, consider selling shares in the when or if they purchase stocks, bonds
equally between your son and daugh- business to children; that way, a good or any other investments. All stocks or
ter but your checking account is in portion of your income could be taxed investment vehicles mentioned are for
joint names with only your daughter as capital gains instead of ordinary in- illustrative purposes only. Mr Aslam is
then that account will go only to her. come. not an attorney, accountant, real estate
Don’t Assume those you decide will broker, stockbroker, investment advi-
Hide the location of your assets or take over the family business really un- sor or certifi ed fi nancial planner. Mr
their worth from your executor or suc- derstand what it takes to be successful. Aslam does not have anything for
cessor trustee. It will take much longer Children will only develop the neces- sale.)

POLLUTION FROM P22 Pacifi c. atures can drive up some types of air
Air pollution, a global ‘menace’ Air pollution is associated pollution. Th e forces that are driving
India’s battle with toxic air with several serious health issues, air pollution, like fossil fuel combus-
refl ects a global trend of rising air including heart attacks, asthma at- tion, is “the same driver of carbon
pollution levels. Juan Jose Castillo, tacks, heart disease and lung cancer. pollution that is exacerbating global
a regional advisor in air quality and What’s more, “Th e science tells us climate change,” he says.
health at PAHO/WHO tells TIME that health risks related to pollution So transitioning to cleaner re-
that more than 90% of cities in the exposure increase the longer some- newable energy sources isn’t just
world are “exposed to pollution lev- one is outside,” Limaye says. But he about dealing with an “existential
els that are beyond the air quality adds that even short-term exposure long-term global threat” but can
guidance from WHO.” to these small particles is enough reap immediate public health ben-
Th is kind of pollution is a to cause serious long-term health efi ts that can also help save on health
“global menace,” he adds, noting problems. Dr Salil Sharma, a throat care costs. “We need short-term ac-
that “we can absolutely say that air specialist, told the AP that 95% of tions — the odd-even scheme, dis-
pollution is increasing globally.” his patients over the last 10 days are tributing masks, really dramatic
And the eff ects are dire. About 7 sick because of the pollution. action,” Limaye says. “But we also
million people worldwide die pre- Th e global air pollution cri- need sustained work to address the
maturely each year from air pollu- sis is connected to climate change, underlying problem and in doing so
tion related diseases, according to explains Limaye. “Th ey are linked we can tackle the climate crisis. It’s
a 2018 UN report — with 4 million problems with linked solutions,” he really a win-win for climate mitiga-
of these deaths occurring in Asia- says, explaining that higher temper- tion and for public health.” - TIME
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