You have worked hard to build your wealth. Naturally, you want to protect those assets and eventually pass them on to your loved ones. But navigating the rules of wealth transfer can feel like a massive hurdle. A Family Limited Partnership (FLP) offers a strategic way to manage your wealth today while gradually transferring it to the next generation.
Best of all, you do not even need to own a business to set one up. You can use an FLP to transfer real estate, investments, and other valuable assets, making it a highly flexible tool for your long-term financial strategy.
Setting up an FLP involves creating a partnership with two distinct roles. First, you hold a general partnership interest, usually around 1% to 2%. Then, you create limited partnership interests for the remaining 98% to 99%. Over time, you can sell or gift these limited shares to your children or other family members.
As the general partner, you keep full management control over the partnership's assets. Even after you give away the vast majority of the asset's financial value, you still call the shots. The limited partners have minimal say in day-to-day operations, and their ability to sell their shares to outsiders is highly restricted by the partnership agreement. This setup helps consolidate family assets and keeps everything strictly in the family.
Adding an FLP to your estate plan opens the door to several valuable benefits, from tax savings to liability protection.
Every share you transfer to family members removes that value from your taxable estate. Right now, the federal gift and estate tax exemption is sitting at a record high. For 2026, the exemption amount is $15 million per individual, or $30 million for married couples. Lawmakers could eventually reduce this limit, making it crucial to act proactively.
Because limited partnership shares have almost no management control and are hard to sell, their value is heavily discounted for gift tax purposes. This valuation discount allows you to transfer even more wealth to your heirs tax-free.
An FLP acts as a pass-through entity for income taxes. The partnership itself does not pay federal taxes. Instead, the income passes through to the individual partners, who report it on their personal tax returns.
If you sit in the 35% tax bracket and transfer shares to a child in the 10% or 12% bracket, your family keeps more of its money. Just be mindful of the "kiddie tax," which can apply to children up to age 23 depending on their specific financial circumstances.
An FLP can effectively shield your assets from certain creditors. If a limited partner faces a lawsuit or debt collection, their creditors generally cannot seize the assets inside the FLP. At most, a creditor might secure the right to future distributions received by that partner. Furthermore, a limited partner's outside personal assets are usually protected from the FLP's own creditors.
General partners do not get this automatic protection. However, you can limit your personal liability by setting up a corporation or limited liability company (LLC) to hold your general partnership interest.
Using an FLP is a highly effective way to save on taxes, protect your assets, and keep wealth in the family. However, setting one up requires strict attention to detail. You must follow partnership formalities closely and handle ongoing administrative tasks to withstand potential IRS scrutiny.
You do not have to figure this out alone. Building a resilient financial future is about making smart decisions with the right team by your side. Contact our advisors today to determine if a Family Limited Partnership is the right move for your unique financial goals.