Our Clients' Stories
Our families have a range of profiles – some have worked with us for decades and some are new relationships. Some are multi-generational, spread across the country and around the globe; others are single-member households. Some have traditional family structures; many do not. Some have multi-tiered, complex portfolios and others need a solution to one problem. In every case, Hemenway & Barnes delivers family office services that combine caring and confidentiality with a holistic understanding of your situation.
Our clients' stories say it best
An accomplished entrepreneur recently consolidated his wealth management relationships with our affiliate Hemenway Trust Company. He was convinced to do so after he requested that we assess his investments because it was difficult for him to review them across multiple managers. Through our analysis, we learned that he was overexposed in certain asset classes and had too many illiquid investments, and that little attention had been given to long-term tax consequences. The result compromised his investment returns. When we consolidated his resources, we created a holistic financial and estate plan. We brought insights from a team of attorneys, tax experts, and investment management professionals to optimize results.
A next generation philanthropist gave birth to a new organization with a vital mission. In recent years, a third generation family member of a longstanding client and philanthropic family had a vision for a program to engage youth. Our team has been there every step of the journey to help realize the vision – formalizing governance, advising on fundraising, investing the portfolio, and administering grants. Our client appreciates working with our team's younger advisors; their energy and determination have been instrumental in bringing the dream to life.
A soon-to-retire business owner enjoyed the enviable position of forming a successful biotech startup, growing it into an IPO, and receiving stock option incentives. Our family office team has designed estate plans for the family and helped gauge the timing for exercising options. Team members have guided targeted philanthropy that reflects our client's scientific interests. We helped present wealth education to his children; this father wanted his kids to work hard, as he had. Our client's convictions and philosophy have been interwoven into all aspects of planning.
A couple in their mid-sixties with extended family came to us when they realized that because they had been busy with careers and kids, they had deferred essential and impending retirement planning. We helped identify, and began to solve, a range of issues. We first established financial plans focusing on retirement investments, led by our affiliate Hemenway Trust Company. We sourced care for their older parents. We next initiated a series of family meetings to plan the transfer of shares of their vacation home to their children – helping untangle conflicts by endowing a fund for future taxes and creating conservation easement on their lands. Our team continues to collaborate on creative solutions.
Some details have been changed to protect confidentiality.
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