Tom West is a Senior Partner with Signature Estate & Investment Advisors, LLC, providing personalized financial planning and investment services to families in the Washington DC metro area. 

Suzanne Schmitt is a financial wellness expert with nearly two decades of industry experience in consumer insights, product development and positioning, and marketing and market enablement in financial services.

In this episode of The Family Financial Conversation, Tom and Suzanne focus on the topic of successor decision-makers, discussing the institutional changes and challenges financial advisors face in adapting to the shifting demographics of clients.

Topics they also discussed:

• The institutional changes that advisors need to be aware of, such as the aging client base and the necessity of building relationships with second and third generations.
• Administrative aspects imposed by custodians and institutions, like filling out trusted contact forms and identifying successor decision makers.
• Concerns that institutions prioritize liability over supporting advisors and clients.
• The difficulty for advisors in navigating successor decision-making and suggests a more supportive approach from institutions.
• Procrastination and the need for institutions to provide resources and training to advisors.
• The importance of recognizing shared experiences between advisors and successors to demonstrate value.
• The necessity of documents like power of attorney and trusted contact forms, and the importance of proactive outreach by advisors.
• The importance of consensus-building among blended families and prioritizing healthcare and housing decisions is highlighted.

Resources: Signature Estate & Investment Advisors, LLC.

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