A trust can lose money through poor planning even when markets rise. That concern anchors our conversation with investment adviser Jeremy Lau about trust administration. Lau explains how trustees should assess beneficiaries’ needs, expenses, liquidity, risk tolerance, taxes, and fees before deciding how to invest assets. 

We discuss why liquid investments matter, how trustees can work with professional advisers, and warning signs deserving review. Lau recommends checking an adviser’s record and judging returns against an appropriate benchmark, not headlines or a stock index. He explains performance attribution and the risks of speculative requests. Listeners will come away with a sense of how investment guidelines can help trustees make and explain decisions in beneficiaries’ interests and answer beneficiary questions clearly.

Jeremy L. Lau serves as the CEO of Prudent Investors. He frequently speaks on investment management and financial planning to professional fiduciaries and trust and estate attorneys around the country. Jeremy regularly advises fiduciaries on managing their clients’ assets and financial planning needs and also works with estate litigators as a financial expert witness. Before Prudent Investors, he worked in senior roles in the investment banking industry in Tokyo and Hong Kong. He graduated in Accounting from Brigham Young University and has earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®) and Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) designations.

In this episode, you will hear:

• Fiduciary duties under the Uniform Prudent Investor Act
• Matching investment risk to beneficiaries’ needs
• Planning for special needs trust expenses and liquidity
• Spotting portfolio and financial adviser red flags
• Choosing fair benchmarks and reviewing performance
• Using an investment policy statement to guide decisions

Resources from this Episode

https://www.prudentinvestors.com 

The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw 

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