Build and Protect Generational Wealth

    PASADENA, CA, January 25, 2022 /24-7PressRelease/ -- America's racial wealth gap is enormous and getting worse. One study warns that the median net worth of Black Americans will hit zero by 2053. Portia Wood is on a mission to change this dire prediction. She and her mother, Robin Wood, are generational wealth planning attorneys. Their estate planning firm, Wood Legal Group, LLP, is passionately focused on helping historically marginalized communities grow and protect wealth by being a trusted resource for accurate information and comprehensive, culturally competent estate planning.

"We focus on multi-generational planning with an emphasis on closing the racial wealth gap in our communities," Portia says.

There are many reasons so few black and brown families use trusts to protect and pass down their wealth, but it often comes down to inadequate financial literacy and too few trusted sources for acquiring it. Only about 2% of attorneys specializing in estate planning represent communities of color.

It is important to recognize that the issues surrounding intergenerational wealth extend beyond these communities. And the solutions Portia and Robin advocate can benefit any family looking to protect and pass down wealth — provided they act in time.

"We're on the precipice of one of the largest wealth transfers in America's history," Portia says. "Baby boomers hold the majority of the wealth. As they pass away, if they do not have protections in place for the next generation, a huge chunk of that that wealth will be lost simply because there was no plan in place to preserve it— and unfortunately, you can't buy it back."

Some issues they can illuminate include:

· Historical impediments to building and protecting black wealth.
· How estate planning can change the 2053 trajectory.
· The future of generational wealth, by women of color for women of color.
· Business planning to build and protect intergenerational wealth.
· Three critical components of an estate plan.
· Estate planning "must do's" for young adults and families.

"The United States ranks fourth in the world for orphaned children due to the COVID-19 pandemic," Portia says. "Too often parents of young children just aren't prepared. We don't have guardianship paperwork in place to protect our kids. Who raises your children if something happens to you? Most people don't realize that their parents and siblings will not automatically be authorized as guardians, and child protective services can take your kids until a judge decides."

Portia and Robin are equally passionate about making sure women know how to protect their assets. "We women typically live longer than men, so we're often the final determiners of what happens to our families' assets," Portia says.

Their comprehensive approach to estate planning includes addressing end-of-life questions and final directives.

"People often have a misconception that your estate plan is about what happens after you die," Portia says. "It's really about how you live, and how you want the people who are left behind to carry on with what you've worked to build."

About: Daughter and mother law partners Portia M. Wood and Robin Wood are generational wealth planning attorneys. Based in Los Angeles, they lead Wood Legal Group, LLP, a woman-owned and operated law firm specializing in estate planning, probate, and elder law. They are passionately focused on helping marginalized communities grow and protect wealth through education, estate planning, and inter-generational wealth protection. Learn more at woodlegalgroup.com.

For more information, visit the online press kit portiawood.onlinepresskit247.com. To request an interview with Portia and Robin Wood, contact International Publicist Michelle Tennant Nicholson: [email protected] or 828-749-3200.

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