How early should I start succession planning?

Ideally 3 to 5 years before the transition. The pre-transition tax positioning, the gifting strategy, the governance work, and the personal financial readiness all benefit from real runway. Many owners come to us 12 to 18 months out, which is still workable but tighter.

What's the difference between business succession and business exit planning?

Succession usually refers to a transition where the business continues with new ownership (family, management, employees). Exit usually refers to a transition where the owner cashes out via a third-party sale. The planning work overlaps but the structure differs. See the Business Exit Planning page for the sale-specific work.

Do you sell the business or run the deal?

No. We aren't investment bankers, brokers, or M&A attorneys. We're the personal financial planning piece, coordinated with the team that runs the actual transaction. We help the owner understand the financial side and prepare for the life after.

What if I am transitioning to family?

Family transitions add several layers: gifting strategy across multiple years, governance decisions about decision-making and ownership, the dynamics around active vs. non-active family members, and the personal financial plan for the transitioning owner. We coordinate with your business attorney on the governance documents and handle the financial planning.

What's an ESOP and is it right for my business?

An Employee Stock Ownership Plan transitions company ownership to a trust held for the benefit of employees. ESOPs are powerful for owners who want to preserve company culture, reward employees, and access tax-advantaged exit treatment. They're also complex to set up and ongoing to maintain. Worth a serious conversation if your situation has the right characteristics.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

5/5

Business Succession Planning For The Owner Who Built It

Business succession planning across family transitions, owner buyouts, ESOPs, and the personal financial plan that lives on the other side. For South Florida owners planning the next chapter.

Schedule A Consultation Call (561) 210-7339

Fiduciary CFP® Attorney-Coordinated Family Business Focus Owner-First

WHY CLIENTS CHOOSE US

The business transition is most owners' largest financial event. Plan it like one.

Family vs. third-party transition

The succession path matters. Family transitions, internal sales to management, ESOPs, and third-party sales each have different tax, valuation, and timeline effects.

Personal financial plan, post-transition

What does the owner's life look like financially after the business is no longer producing income? That's the planning conversation most succession discussions skip.

Coordinated with attorney and CPA

Succession is a team effort. We're the financial planning piece, coordinated with your business attorney, your CPA, and any investment banker involved.

Multi-year runway

Tax positioning, governance changes, key-person planning, and valuation work all benefit from a 2 to 5 year runway. We start early when we can.

Long-term, not transactional

We meet on a real cadence, usually quarterly. The plan flexes as your life and the tax code change. Most relationships span decades.

South Florida-rooted, nationally licensed

Offices in Boca Raton and Plantation, plus licensed in all 50 states. Existing clients keep us when they move.

The transitions we plan for.

Family succession. Transitioning to the next generation, with the gifting strategy, governance setup, and emotional/family-dynamic considerations that go with it.

Internal sale to management. Management buyouts and partner buy-ins. Often financed over time, with specific tax and cash flow considerations.

ESOPs. Employee stock ownership plans as a transition vehicle. Powerful for the right situation, complex to implement.

Third-party sale. Where the transition is the same as the exit. See also our Business Exit Planning page.

For owners 2 to 5 years out from a transition, this is the window where the planning matters most. The pre-sale tax positioning, the charitable structures, the gifting strategy, and the family governance conversations all benefit from real-time runway.

OUR APPROACH

How Business Succession works at Intercoastal.

Three things that shape how we deliver business succession for South Florida clients.

01 Coordinated, not siloed

Business Succession doesn't sit alone. The investment plan, the tax plan, and the estate plan reference each other. We coordinate all three so decisions match.

02 Personal, not templated

No off-the-shelf model portfolios or boilerplate plans. The recommendations match your specific income, tax bracket, family situation, and timeline.

03 Ongoing, not transactional

We meet on a quarterly cadence to adjust the plan as your life and the tax code change. The relationship is long-term by design.

What we cover

Owner financial readiness. The personal financial plan that determines whether the owner can actually afford to step away, at what valuation, and at what timeline.
Pre-transition tax positioning. Roth conversions, charitable giving structures, gifting strategies, and entity-level decisions that have to happen before the transition closes.
Valuation coordination. Working with appraisers and investment bankers to understand the range of valuations and how they connect to the owner's personal financial outcome.
Family governance. For family transitions, the structure of decision-making rights, share ownership, dividend policy, and conflict resolution.
Post-transition wealth plan. The investment, tax, and estate plan for the proceeds. The work that has to happen the day after the deal closes.
Key-person planning. Insurance and contractual protections that keep the business viable through the transition.

What this is not.

We aren't investment bankers, business brokers, or M&A attorneys. We don't run the sale process, don't represent the buyer or seller in the transaction, and don't draft the purchase agreement. We're the personal financial planning piece, coordinated with the team that does run those parts.

RELATED SERVICES

Where succession planning fits.

Business succession ties to many other planning areas:

Business Exit Planning

The sibling page. Third-party sale planning, post-sale wealth strategy.

See business exit planning

Financial Planning for Business Owners

The audience-parent page. The full picture of working with business owners.

See financial planning for business owners

Tax Planning

Pre-transition tax positioning is the highest-value tax planning work most owners ever do.

See tax planning

Who This Is For

The clients who benefit most.

Business succession planning fits owners in these situations:

Founders Planning Their Exit Family Business Next-Gen Pre-Retiree Owners Widows Inheriting a Business

What we don't do.

Contact Us Today

We don't lead with proprietary products, structured notes, or non-traded REITs as a portfolio building block. We don't take custody of your assets. We don't promise market-beating returns. The honest answer is that nobody who has to tell the truth to a regulator can.

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Posts our planning team has put together on this topic.

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May 22, 2025

Succeeding at Business Succession

There are a number of reasons for business owners to consider a business succession plan sooner rather than later.

Schedule Your Free Consultation

No obligation. We respond the same business day.

QUESTIONS, ANSWERED
Common questions about Business Succession

Ideally 3 to 5 years before the transition. The pre-transition tax positioning, the gifting strategy, the governance work, and the personal financial readiness all benefit from real runway. Many owners come to us 12 to 18 months out, which is still workable but tighter.
Succession usually refers to a transition where the business continues with new ownership (family, management, employees). Exit usually refers to a transition where the owner cashes out via a third-party sale. The planning work overlaps but the structure differs. See the Business Exit Planning page for the sale-specific work.
No. We aren't investment bankers, brokers, or M&A attorneys. We're the personal financial planning piece, coordinated with the team that runs the actual transaction. We help the owner understand the financial side and prepare for the life after.
Family transitions add several layers: gifting strategy across multiple years, governance decisions about decision-making and ownership, the dynamics around active vs. non-active family members, and the personal financial plan for the transitioning owner. We coordinate with your business attorney on the governance documents and handle the financial planning.
An Employee Stock Ownership Plan transitions company ownership to a trust held for the benefit of employees. ESOPs are powerful for owners who want to preserve company culture, reward employees, and access tax-advantaged exit treatment. They're also complex to set up and ongoing to maintain. Worth a serious conversation if your situation has the right characteristics.

FIND US

Two offices, one team.

Boca Raton (Home Office)

1200 North Federal Highway, Suite 300

Boca Raton, FL 33432

(561) 210-7339

Monday to Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM ET

Plantation

7901 SW 6th Court, Suite 320

Plantation, FL 33324

(954) 809-3553