Family Office Services

EisnerAmper LLPAccountant & Advisors

Family Offices face many challenges in today’s environment, including globalization, tax exposure, risk management, new technologies, and expanding capital markets.

Coupled with various goals such as asset protection, succession planning, and philanthropic objectives, many Family Offices develop and strive to achieve a vision for the family via long-term strategic planning.

Family Office Services

“We consider proactive client tax planning to be a year-round process.”

EisnerAmper provides family offices with a wide array of financial, advisory, accounting, and tax services customized to fit their multifaceted needs and objectives. Our services also support client advisors at financial services firms, and include:

As part of integrated approach to multigenerational, multi-branch Family Offices to assist them in achieving their vision. EisnerAmper’s approach utilizes a platform by which appropriate expertise can be delivered to the U.S. and global marketplace, offering traditional accounting, tax and advisory services to individuals and Family Offices and related middle market businesses and the public markets.

EisnerAmper is also able to provide national and international support to Family Offices through its affiliation with PKF International, a membership association comprised of independently owned and operated regional accounting firms, existing to provide its members’ clients with national, and, if need be, worldwide expertise in accounting, auditing, management advisory, taxation, and other related professional services. As a member of this prestigious global network, we offer our clients the combined benefits of global know-how and coordinated, worldwide service.

U.S. and International Tax Planning and Compliance

Accounting Services

Banking Management

Bill Paying and Check Writing

Financial Planning

Human Resources/New Hire Assistance

Insurance Reviews and Claims Submission

Payroll Services

Asset Protection and Estate Planning

Asset Valuation Assistance

Philanthropy and Charitable Giving Advisory Services

Preparation of Single Consolidated Investment Reports from Investment Reports Produced by Multiple Custodians

Review of Family Office Internal Controls and Risk Management Protocols To Safeguard Assets

Succession Planning

Litigation Consulting and Forensic Accounting

Industry specialization expertise for specific business interests

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U. S. and International Tax Planning and ComplianceEisnerAmper provides comprehensive federal and state individual income tax compliance and advisory services to our U.S. and international clients. We also provide similar services for clients that have trusts, foundations, partnerships and limited liability companies, and corporate entity structures. We consider proactive client tax planning to be a year-round process. We strive to remain current on significant amounts of income and deductions so that new developments can be incorporated in the client’s year-round tax planning process. We regularly monitor federal and state income tax legislation, case law, and Internal Revenue Service and Treasury developments in order to remain abreast of current and evolving developments. For international clients, we consider U.S. and foreign treaty protocols, residency and income sourcing matters, tax preparation and foreign tax credits, and expat and inpat matters and immigration considerations, as required and/or applicable.

Accounting ServicesBased on the client’s originating accounting information and transactions, we assist them in drafting trial balance information which may include income statements, balance sheets, and statements of cash flows; these statements can be prepared on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis depending on the needs of the client, utilizing the client’s accounting software packages or Quicken, or Excel- based tools, or manual entry systems. We can help present client financial statements on either a book or tax basis of accounting, and mindful of federal income tax filing requirements; in certain cases we can “bridge” accounting detail into tax reporting software in order to prepare annual income tax returns. Our accounting services can also include financial account reconciliations including bank statement reconciliations. In many cases we may prepare financial statement compilations, or we may review or audit financial statements prepared by a family office, on either a separate entity or consolidated basis.

Banking ManagementIn addition to coordinating the rendering of bill paying services with a client’s bank, we help clients manage their banking relationships and transactions, including directing the transfer of funds between bank accounts; monitoring client’s credit card balance and limits; assisting with obtaining lines of credit; and assisting with liability refinancing. EisnerAmper does not take custody of client assets, nor recommend that clients buy or sell any investment assets. Generally, EisnerAmper does not sign client checks nor approve client transactions; these functions are executed by the client.

Bill Paying and Check WritingWe view bill paying services as a core offering for many of our high net worth and family office clients. EisnerAmper prepares checks matched to bills received on behalf of or by the client. The client signs checks and approves bills to be paid. In many cases, EisnerAmper will mail to vendors signed client checks accompanying the bills to be paid. Our bill paying services include obtaining clients’ authorization to enable their bank to allow EisnerAmper to obtain client checks; obtaining on- line access to read bank account information (account statements, cash balances, and other information maintained by the bank); obtaining invoices from the client’s vendors and preparing checks for client’s signature; and performing bank monthly reconciliations, monitoring cash balances, and preparing disbursement summaries for the client. We also prepare payroll checks. EisnerAmper retains records of all paid bills (and underlying support) in paper and electronic format.

Service we provide our clients

Philanthropy and Charitable Giving Advisory ServicesMany of our family office clients have philanthropic objectives. We assist clients in structuring lifetime or testamentary charitable gifts matched to these objectives. We consider charitable giving alternatives and advise clients as to the benefits of outright charitable transfers or utilizing donor-advised funds, charitable annuity trust or unitrust or lead trust structures, non-operating and/or operating charitable foundations, or other structures. We assist clients in analyzing economic issues related to a gift and optimal assets to transfer, as well as asset valuation considerations, bargain sales, and transfers of partial interests. We assist clients in documenting charitable transfers, as well as in obtaining proper appraisals as now required due to recent Treasury regulations. We prepare related income tax filings and required tax return disclosures, as well as related advisory services. We consider charitable giving as a component of a family’s overall estate plan.

Preparation of Single Consolidated Investment Reports from Investment Reports Produced by Multiple CustodiansMany family offices maintain multiple investment advisor relationships and have more than one investment asset custodian relationship. In these situations, we can assist family offices in consolidating the investment reports they receive from multiple relationships.

Consolidated investment reports put the family office client in an enhanced position to review its portfolio and investment activities on a comprehensive basis, with special attention to the family office’s aggregate investment objectives. Our consolidation services can include investment performance reports over multiple time periods, reflect separate asset classes in the aggregate portfolio and depict other investment portfolio attributes. Our consolidated reports can be prepared on a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis, considering the needs of the family office. Separate account reports can also be prepared.

Review of Family Office Internal Controls and Risk Management Protocols To Safeguard AssetsMany family offices that we work with internally perform their required office operations and functions; for instance check- writing functions, bill-paying and general accounting and financial reporting, payroll reporting, cash management, and tax return preparation. Frequently, however, family offices that perform these internal functions request us to review and assess their financial operations, processes, and internal controls. The purpose of our review and assessment is to help ensure that family office financial operations are effective and efficient, promote fiscal integrity, incorporate sound internal control measures and safeguards, and are in line with best practices.

Succession PlanningOften family offices (and/or individual family members) own interests in, or manage, operating businesses; these businesses may have been created by a living family member(s) or inherited by a subsequent generation. Where business succession to junior or future family generations is desired, we help clients design and implement formal succession plans. We also consider asset equalization structures when certain family members may be receiving a business interest, and a family wants an equal value of non-business assets to be transferred to other family members; in our experience this is a frequent objective. We consider asset valuations and premiums and discounts, intra-family sales, gifts, business liquidity and cash flow matters, and succession plan matters as part of a business transfer and succession plan. We integrate succession planning with a family’s overall estate plan and asset protection plan.

Financial PlanningWe view financial planning as a comprehensive and year-round process for the entire family. We also work closely with a family’s professional advisors and strive to understand the family’s (or individual members’) financial planning objectives. Our professionals use a comprehensive process that considers every aspect of a family’s financial circumstances, and addresses integrated matters for the client such as achieving investment asset protection accumulation, tax planning, retirement planning and education funding, and risk management. Our process includes understanding the objectives the family desires to achieve with a financial plan; reviewing individual family members’ (as applicable) balance sheets; reviewing the prior year and current year cash inflows and outflows; based on the client’s facts and objectives and agreed-upon assumptions, we model the increase or decrease in the client’s net assets (and components), considering net cash inflows/outflows over a determined time horizon; review the client’s financial risk base considering certain scenarios (premature death, deteriorating health, disability, property loss, or other circumstances); considering all of the above, provide written observations and recommendations to the client to attain their objectives; and assist the client with the implementation of agreed-upon recommendations. We monitor the plan on a periodic basis to measure goal attainment and make changes as necessary.

Human Resources/New Hire AssistanceOver the years, we have helped our family office clients identify and hire financial professionals, including chief financial officers, controllers, senior accounting managers, and tax and accounting staff professionals. Skills we can help our family office clients procure include general accounting, income tax compliance, budgeting and forecasting, and special industry expertise as needed. With our relationships we can also help our clients perform pre-hire employee background checks.

Insurance Reviews and Claims SubmissionEisnerAmper provides clients with guidance and recommendations for complete family insurance needs including life, disability, health, long-term care, home and auto and collectibles, umbrella policies, and general liability coverage. We work with applicable insurance brokers to facilitate a smooth and efficient process to help clients obtain coverage and submit and monitor insurance claims; we also provide periodic reviews of coverages. We assist clients in evaluating the accuracy of insurance policy premiums prior to payment, complete applicable paperwork, and submit claims for reimbursement. We integrate insurance planning with the client’s overall financial plan, to help obtain coverages against known and insurance risks as well as adequate insurance coverages with minimum premium outlays. We often review clients’ existing policies to determine their risk exposures and insurance needs, and to help the client identify the best insurance choices to address their financial objectives and protection. This will include periodic review to make sure coverage is appropriate. As independent and objective advisors, we do not sell insurance products or receive any commissions or any other fees from any parties in connection with a client’s acquisition of insurance products.

Payroll ServicesIn rendering payroll services we obtain employee census (names and residency), addresses, and pay rates. We advise family office clients as to the federal, state, and local tax withholding requirements and amounts, and advise and provide instructions regarding tax deposit requirements. We also prepare all required monthly, quarterly, and annual federal and state payroll tax filings. In certain cases it may be in the client’s best interest to seek alternative payroll service providers; most commonly this circumstance arises where there is a very high volume of employees. In these cases we can assist clients to identify alternative payroll service providers. We have no alliances or joint ventures with third party payroll services providers.

Asset Protection and Estate PlanningMost family office clients are concerned about protecting assets and minimizing gift and estate tax, often as part of an overall long- term asset management and asset transfer plan. Effective wealth transfer is also a common objective. We help our clients review their personal balance sheets and assets and liability holdings at fair value, and wills and other in-force estate planning documents to help measure current estate tax exposures. We also help our clients design, monitor, and update asset protection and comprehensive estate plans attendant to their objectives, and we frequently work with a client’s legal, insurance, and other professional advisors in this regard. We are very familiar with estate planning and asset protection trust structures, limited liability company and partnership structures, asset and liability titling, the proper design of entity ownership rights (voting and non-voting, or other rights), gifting and asset transfer alternatives, utilization of domestic and non-domestic asset management vehicles, and other asset protection and estate planning considerations. We also regularly monitor federal and state tax legislation, case law, and Internal Revenue Service and Treasury developments in addition to views of other professionals, all in order to remain abreast of current and evolving developments.

Asset Valuation AssistanceEisnerAmper valuation services professionals assist family office clients in determining a value of an asset or liability.We consider various facts and circumstances based on the purpose of a valuation. For family office clients, our professionals help determine an appropriate value for asset transfer purposes such as gifting or intra-family sales. We also consider valuation discounts and premiums attendant to the ownership of LLC and partnership interests, and corporate stock ownership. Additional considerations include asset liquidity, the presence of voting and non-voting rights, distribution and liquidation rights, asset marketability, and asset sale and purchase restrictions.

Litigation Consulting and Forensic AccountingFrom time to time, family offices may need assistance with independent financial investigations related to a family member’s divorce, trust accountings where there is a conflict of interest, or financial improprieties. We frequently work with our clients’ attorneys and other financial advisors in analyzing complex financial and accounting issues, assessing the strength of a clients’ position, and helping to identify, organize, and analyze data that is key to a legal strategy. Our professionals are experienced in testifying in court as expert witnesses; experts in forensic accounting; and specialists in financial and fraud investigations, including tax and other white collar crime cases, embezzlements, and business failures. We also possess expertise in the application of generally accepted accounting principles and audit standards (“GAAP” and “GAAS”) and in the application of SEC Rules and Regulations; and in reorganization and insolvency, with experience in engagements for financially troubled and bankrupt companies.

Industry specialization expertise for family offices with specific business interestsMany family offices have investments in, or are associated with, operating businesses in specific industries. Because a family’s business relationships will impact the family’s financial situation, our family office services are integrated to address the financial overlap and dynamics among the family and business. Our business industry expertise can be applied to family offices associated across all major industries, including:

Financial ServicesHealth SciencesLaw FirmsNot-for-Profit EntitiesReal EstateSports, Media & EntertainmentTechnology

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EisnerAmper LLPEisnerAmper LLP is one of the premier full-service accounting and advisory firms in the United States. We provide audit, accounting, and tax services as well as corporate finance, internal audit and risk management, litigation consulting, and other services to clients across a broad range of industries. EisnerAmper works with middle market and Fortune 500 companies, as well as high net worth individuals, family o­ces, closely held businesses, not-for-profits, and early-stage companies. Our range of expertise and standing in the profession allow us to leverage our insight and relationships on behalf of our clients. EisnerAmper LLP serves clients worldwide, and is an independent member of PKF North America, which is an independent member of PKF International.

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EisnerAmper LLP is an independent member of PKF North America, which is an independent member of PKF International and does not accept any responsibility or liability for the actions or inactions on the part of any other individual member firm or firms.