What We Do  /  Estate & Trust

The structures that ensure your wealth endures.

A will is the beginning of an estate plan, not the end. For families with significant wealth, trust architecture is the primary tool for reducing estate tax, protecting assets, and transferring value to the next generation on your terms.

Schedule a Consultation Lead advisor: Shirley Nelson JD CFP®

Estate planning is ultimately about control — and time is the critical variable.

For families whose combined estate exceeds the federal exemption — currently $13.99 million per individual — the federal estate tax applies at a flat 40% rate on every dollar above that threshold. That is a significant and largely avoidable cost, but the tools to reduce it require time to work. A grantor retained annuity trust (GRAT) shifts appreciation out of your taxable estate over a defined term; the more years it has to run, the more it can transfer. An irrevocable trust funded today removes that capital — and all future appreciation on it — from your estate permanently. Annual gifting programs compound over decades.

We approach estate and trust planning with two concurrent goals: reducing the taxable estate over time, and ensuring the structures we build reflect the family's actual values and intentions. A dynasty trust designed to hold assets for three generations needs governance provisions that address who controls distributions, how successor trustees are selected, and what protections exist for beneficiaries. These are not purely legal questions — they require a financial planner and an attorney working in close coordination, which is precisely how we operate.

Spousal lifetime access trusts (SLATs) allow a married couple to remove assets from the taxable estate while retaining indirect access through a spouse — a critical benefit for families who want to transfer wealth but are not ready to relinquish access entirely. Qualified personal residence trusts (QPRTs) remove a primary or vacation home from the estate at a discounted value while allowing the grantor to continue living there during the trust term. Irrevocable life insurance trusts (ILITs) keep life insurance proceeds out of the taxable estate entirely, often funding the estate tax liability itself.

For families with charitable intent, private foundations and supporting organizations allow a more enduring philanthropic legacy — one that can involve children and grandchildren in grant-making and instill values across generations. We integrate charitable vehicles into the full estate plan, ensuring they serve both the family's legacy goals and the most favorable tax outcomes.

Structures & Tools
  • Revocable living trusts
  • Irrevocable trusts (asset protection)
  • Grantor retained annuity trusts (GRATs)
  • Spousal lifetime access trusts (SLATs)
  • Qualified personal residence trusts (QPRTs)
  • Irrevocable life insurance trusts (ILITs)
  • Dynasty trusts & generation-skipping
  • Private foundations & donor-advised funds
  • 529 education planning
  • Family governance & mission statements
On Legislative Risk

The current federal exemption of $13.99M per individual is scheduled to sunset after 2025 without Congressional action. Families with estates above $7–8M should consider acting now while the elevated exemption remains available.

Who It's For

The urgency of estate planning increases with wealth — and age.

Most estate planning mistakes are mistakes of delay. The families who benefit most are those who begin structuring well before they need to.

Profile 01

Families with $5M+ in estate exposure

At current exemption levels, a married couple with a combined estate above $28M faces a 40% estate tax on every dollar above that threshold. For most, the most powerful mitigation strategies — GRATs, dynasty trusts, generation-skipping transfers — require years to execute effectively. We help families identify their estate tax exposure and begin reducing it systematically, well before the need becomes urgent.

Profile 02

Parents planning for multi-generational transfer

Families with children and grandchildren who want to transfer wealth deliberately — rather than simply leaving it — need more than a will. They need trust structures that balance access and protection for each generation, governance frameworks that instill values alongside assets, and education accounts funded in the most tax-efficient manner. We design plans that reflect what families actually want their legacy to look like.

Profile 03

Business owners approaching an exit

A business sale is often the largest wealth event in an owner's life — and also the most compressed planning window. In the 12–24 months before a transaction, opportunities exist to transfer equity into trusts at low valuations, fund charitable vehicles with pre-appreciation shares, and structure sale proceeds to minimize estate inclusion. We begin estate planning work well before the transaction closes, not after.

Our Approach

From inventory to implementation — and sustained over time.

Estate planning requires both legal expertise and financial modeling. Shirley Nelson brings both — a former attorney who designs structures that hold up legally and make financial sense.

1

Estate Inventory & Gap Analysis

We begin by cataloguing every asset class in your estate — investment accounts, retirement accounts, real estate, business interests, life insurance, and personal property — and projecting the estate's size at various growth rates and time horizons. We compare that projection against the federal and applicable state exemptions to quantify the potential estate tax exposure. We then review existing documents (wills, trusts, beneficiary designations, powers of attorney) to identify gaps, outdated provisions, and misaligned beneficiary designations.

2

Structure Design

Based on the inventory and the family's goals, we design a trust architecture that addresses both the estate tax reduction objective and the family's values around control, access, and generational transfer. We model the projected estate tax savings under alternative structures — comparing a GRAT series against a SLAT, for example, or a dynasty trust against outright gifts — and present options with clear trade-offs. The final design reflects both the financial analysis and the family's non-financial priorities.

3

Legal Coordination

We work directly with your estate attorney — or help identify one if you don't have an existing relationship — to translate the financial plan into legal documents. Shirley Nelson's background as a JD allows her to communicate precisely with legal counsel, review draft trust documents for consistency with the financial plan, and identify provisions that may create unintended tax or practical consequences. We remain involved throughout the drafting and execution process.

4

Ongoing Review

Estate plans require maintenance. Tax law changes, family circumstances change, and asset values change — each of which can affect the adequacy of existing structures. We conduct a formal estate plan review every two years (or more frequently following major life events), updating projections, confirming trust funding, reviewing beneficiary designations, and identifying new planning opportunities. We also monitor legislative developments that could affect the federal exemption and advise clients when urgency around action increases.

Your Advisor

Led by an advisor who holds both the legal and financial credentials.

Shirley Nelson, JD, CFP®
Shirley Nelson
JD  ·  CFP®

Lead advisor on trust design, estate tax reduction, and multi-generational planning. Her background as a practicing attorney gives her a rare ability to bridge the gap between financial planning and legal implementation.

Note on Legal Coordination

Youya Wealth LLC is a registered investment adviser, not a law firm, and does not provide legal advice. We work in close coordination with your estate attorney and can refer you to qualified legal counsel in our network when needed. Shirley Nelson's JD enhances our ability to communicate and collaborate with legal professionals — it does not constitute an attorney-client relationship.

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Why UHNW Families Need a Fiduciary Advisor

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The best time to begin estate planning was ten years ago. The next best time is now.

Every year without a plan is a year the exemption goes unused and appreciation compounds inside your taxable estate. Let's review your situation.

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