One question our advisers frequently get asked is “will I benefit from setting up a Trust”?
Trusts, in particular Discretionary Family Trusts, are a popular entity type used by Altus clients. Discretionary Family Trusts are often effective for clients who own shares in trading companies and other positively geared investments.
Some of the benefits of owning assets within a Discretionary Family Trust are:
- Asset protection;
- To distribute income and capital to family members in a flexible way;
- Estate planning.
There are also tax benefits for investing through Discretionary Family Trusts. Trusts share positive tax attributes from other entity types such as the general 50% Capital Gains Tax discount that is available to Individuals and also Small Business Capital Gains Tax relief that is available to Companies.
There are various roles, rules & responsibilities around Trusts that need to be understood if you are considering setting up a Trust. Your Altus adviser can guide and advise you on the appropriateness of a Discretionary Family Trust for your situation.