THE NORTHWOOD PERSPECTIVE

White Papers

Northwood’s white papers cover a variety of issues surrounding family wealth. Each paper provides advice on some aspect of helping successful families properly protect, sustain, and grow family wealth and human capital. The following is a selection of white papers on private wealth management and other topics of interest to our clients, prospective clients and professional advisors.

The Rise of the Integrated Advisor

Over the past several decades, a new professional role has been emerging to address the complex, multi-faceted needs of wealthy families: the integrated advisor. This role grew out of the frustration families had with the traditional service models that were siloed and product-oriented, lacked a central strategy, and ignored the dynamics within the family.
Download White Paper
Download

What’s Next: Preparing for life after selling your business

Many entrepreneurs are great at running their businesses but are not prepared for the transition that occurs after that business is sold. Managing an operating business and managing the wealth that the sale of an operating business can generate are two different skillsets. This article covers how entrepreneurs can prepare to make the transition from being wealth creators to being wealth owners.
Download White Paper
Download

Control What You Can, Conservatively Estimate the Rest

Creating an effective wealth plan involves managing a wide variety of elements, some of which are controllable (e.g. investment costs) while others are not (e.g. investment returns). This article identifies which elements are controllable and how to plan for the unpredictable elements.
Download White Paper
Download

The Critical Role of Expenses in Family Cash Flow Planning

At Northwood Family Office we spend a lot of time working with clients to get an in-depth understanding of their financial situation. As part of that, we work with them to understand their goals and then prepare cash flow projections to plan for the capital they will require during their lifetime and for their estate.
Download White Paper
Download

Tips for Managing Investment Risk

A family’s investment portfolio plays a critical role in helping them meet their financial goals. Unfortunately, many families take on unnecessary risk which could compromise their financial well-being. This article explores the reasons why investors take on excess risk, and steps to take to avoid these pitfalls.
Download White Paper
Download

What is a Family Office?

While family offices have really come into their own in the last 30 years, the concept remains unfamiliar to many. This white paper answers some of the key questions about family offices, including what are the differences between single-family and multi-family offices, what are the range of services provided, and what benefits does a family office provide.
Download White Paper
Download

Increasing the Odds of Successful Wealth Transition

North America is in the early stages of a massive intergenerational wealth transfer with almost $1 trillion changing hands each year, and this may be just the tip of the iceberg. Accenture (2012)suggests that a “great transfer” from the Depression-era generation to baby boomers is taking place now, but a second and even-larger wealth transfer from boomers to their heirs will continue over the next30–40 years.
Download White Paper
Download

Raising Financially Intelligent Children: Ten money questions your kids may ask you

Long time friend of Northwood Family Office, Dr. Jim Grubman is an internationally recognized consultant, speaker, and educator, in the multidisciplinary field of wealth counseling. Using skills developed as a psychologist for over 30 years, Dr. Grubman helps families work through the natural dilemmas of acquired and inherited wealth. This white paper outlines how to successfully raise children of affluence by clearly addressing your child’s questions, helping to teach values and healthy attitudes – the foundation for good money skills.
Download White Paper
Download

Risk and the Role of a Family Office: What entrepreneurs and senior executives need to know

Creating wealth is considerably different than sustaining that wealth, particularly if you are an entrepreneur or corporate executive. The path to this particular type of sustainability can be a perilous one but a family office can smooth that path and ensure that it remains clear for those who will inherit the wealth.
Download White Paper
Download

The Shoemaker’s Children: Why smart, successful professionals can benefit from a family office

A few years ago, I was talking to a lawyer who was lamenting the lack of time and attention she was able to devote to her own family’s personal financial affairs. “My personal affairs never make it to the top of my in-basket,” she said. While she clearly wanted to manage her own affairs well, client issues always seemed more important – and certainly more urgent.
It reminds me of the old Scottish proverb – and its variants in many other languages and cultures – “the shoemaker’s children go barefoot.” The moral of the story is that a busy cobbler is so busy making shoes for his customers that he has no time to make shoes for his own children.
Download White Paper
Download