Your clients rely on your guidance to make important financial decisions. When it comes to charitable giving, we can partner with you to simplify their giving and amplify their impact.
But don’t just take our word for it.
Hear from professionals in the field like Brett Ebert, estate planning attorney with Ball, Loudon, Ebert & Brostrom, LLC, a boutique estate and business law firm.
What are the questions you are most commonly asked about philanthropy?
With new estate planning clients, I talk to them about their charitable goals and which nonprofits they want to support. If they have charitable intent, we analyze the most efficient strategies for their charitable giving.
Philanthropy discussions are a journey. Younger clients want to make sure their kids and families are taken care of first, so those conversations are centered around how much is “enough” for their children and if they have more than that we discuss how to incorporate philanthropy. Older clients, who may have the benefit of knowing their children and families are taken care of often incorporate philanthropy into their estate plans.
For your clients with charitable interests, what makes OCF a good partner to facilitate giving goals?
I talk to a lot of clients about community foundations especially if they bring up more than one area of interest. This gives them the flexibility to fund several causes and nonprofits with ease. Others want to do something charitable but don’t know what exactly to do. People in Nebraska are especially charitable, and it is an easy community to have these conversations with because people want to give and just need guidance and ideas about how best to do it.
How have your clients utilized OCF?
I am currently working with a client who wants to leave a sizeable portion of his estate to charity but doesn’t have a specific organization in mind, so he is working with the Omaha Community Foundation to discuss options that best meet his philanthropic needs, both during his lifetime and as legacy planning.
How can advisors prompt clients to include their children or the next generations in their charitable giving?
In conjunction with a community foundation, we can name their children and families as successor advisors to their fund so we can continue talking about how to give back based on their values. Children can then recommend grants and continue giving after their parents’ lifetimes.
CAP® changed my mind about counseling my clients to have conversations with their children when appropriate. I don’t want children to be surprised about their parents’ charitable giving or their estate plans. I want them to be involved along the way so parents can articulate their values to the next generations.