---
title: "Estate and succession planning around a sale, Tax Strategy for Buying & Selling Routes"
url: https://poolroutemarketplace.com/learn/tax-strategy-for-deals/estate-planning-considerations
description: "A successful sale moves a meaningful chunk of net worth in one transaction. Without estate planning, you can solve a business problem and create a tax-and-famil"
lang: en
---

# Estate and succession planning around a sale

Lesson 8 of 8 · 7 min read

A successful sale moves a meaningful chunk of net worth in one transaction. Without estate planning, you can solve a business problem and create a tax-and-family problem.

**Step-up in basis at death.** Heirs receive assets at the fair-market value at date of death, eliminating built-up capital gains. For older sellers, holding the business until death (with strong succession in place) can wipe out the entire embedded gain. Trade-off: holding requires staying engaged or building real management, and IRS rules around "step-up" continue to evolve.

**Trusts before sale.** Transferring some equity to an irrevocable trust *before* signing an LOI can shift future appreciation outside your taxable estate. Done after the LOI, the IRS may unwind it. This is months-of-planning territory, not days.

**Charitable strategies.** Donating appreciated equity to a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) or Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) before a sale can both reduce capital gains and create deductions. Most useful for sellers who were planning charitable giving anyway and have strong gain (>30% of sale price).

**Family involvement.** If a family member (spouse, child) will inherit or co-own going forward, get them named on documents now, not at the funeral. Misalignment between the operating spouse and the non-operating spouse is the most common source of estate disputes in small businesses.

**Beneficiaries on accounts.** Update bank, brokerage, retirement, and insurance beneficiaries to reflect post-sale wealth distribution intent. Most sellers forget this for a year and create unnecessary risk.

This is an attorney + CPA + financial planner conversation. We're not professional advisors, get them in the room.

## Quick check

\1. What does step-up in basis at death do for heirs?

\2. When can a trust transfer shift future appreciation outside the estate?

\3. Most common source of family estate disputes in small businesses?

\4. What does step-up in basis at death do?

\5. When can a trust transfer shift future appreciation outside the estate?

\6. Match the planning tool to its purpose.

Earn 56 points

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← Previous lesson: https://poolroutemarketplace.com/learn/tax-strategy-for-deals/qualified-small-business-stock

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