Staying Wealthy: Strategies for Protecting Your Assets [Mass Market Paperback]

Brian H. Breuel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2000

From the Bloomberg Personal Bookshelf... selected by the Money Book Club and Eagle Book Club, this personal finance book from Bloomberg offers more than 100 strategies to help you minimize risks to your money, developed for the super rich, but useful for anyone who wants to preserve hard-won earnings.

"Brian Breuel's Staying Wealthy belongs at the elbow of anyone who wants to keep taxes low while building a family fortune.... After you've read it, give it to your children. Even better, give it to your parents. Your heirs will thank you."-- Landon Y. Jones,

Vice President of Strategic Planning, Time Inc., former Managing Editor, Money magazine

"Sound advice on how to enlarge and preserve your wealth no matter what your net worth is."-- William D. Zabel, Esq., author of The Rich Die Richer and You Can Too

"If you've ever worked hard to leave something to your children, don't give the government more than it deserves. Before you consult your lawyer and accountant, you need to read this book. It will open your eyes to some amazing possibilities."-- Kenneth L. Lay, Ph.D., Chairman and CEO, Enron Corp.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Congratulations. You've built a successful business, or earned a lot of money and invested it wisely, or skillfully managed the family business you inherited. Now it's time to figure out what to do with it all, as taking it with you isn't an option. Obviously, there's more to this task than retirement planning, which is complex enough for most people. How do you ensure that your money survives you, no matter how long you live, and ends up in the hands of those you want to have it, after you're gone? How do you keep estate taxes--which can take a 55 percent bite out of your wealth--to a minimum?

Staying Wealthy covers all contingencies, with sections on estate planning, long-term health care, business succession, investing, family issues, liability, charity, and, finally, a look at the all those problems as faced by the superwealthy. The chapter on estate planning alone is scary enough to make you read the entire book. It shows what happens if you die without a will--intestate--and explains that your assets will be divided up according to the laws of whatever state you happened to be living in at the time of your death. "It would be purely coincidental if the state's plan of distribution matched your own," writes Breuel, who goes on to note that it's not just society's poorest who shed their mortal coil without a will; Pablo Picasso and Abraham Lincoln both died intestate. Each section is richly detailed, with easy-to-understand charts and graphs, hypothetical case studies, and real examples drawn from news reports. The only thing more useful for the wealthy would be a book detailing how not to die, get divorced, or become incapacitated. Until someone figures that out, though, Staying Wealthy is the book that should be on the shelf of everyone who's earned a small fortune, or aspires to. --Lou Schuler

From Library Journal

Breuel presents an excellent summary of numerous legal tools anyone can use to preserve their wealth from unnecessary taxation and risk. Those interested in keeping taxes low while building assets can learn how to avoid taxation from estate, inheritance, gift, or income taxes; protect savings from "taxflation"; learn how not to outlive their retirement fund; and how to limit exposure to liability lawsuits, sidestep pitfalls in making wills and trusts, and find and afford quality financial advice. The steady narration keeps the focus on these tools that have become more important now that many people are individually responsible for their own financial success in today's world of 401(k) realities. Highly recommended for all public libraries.ADale Farris, Groves, TX
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Trade; 1st trade paper printing edition (February 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425172732
• ISBN-13: 978-0425172735
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,225,511 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Only Estate Planning Book You'll Ever Have To Buy!!!!, September 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Staying Wealthy: Strategies for Protecting Your Assets (Bloomberg Financial) (Hardcover)

Brian takes you step-by-step through the most basic estate planning to the most intricate. This book should be in every household throughout America. A must read and an excellent book to refer back to from time to time. Well worth the $$$!!!

1.0 out of 5 stars Are You Kidding?, April 20, 2008

By 

Reginald C Tudor "Wealth Manager" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Staying Wealthy: Strategies for Protecting Your Assets (Paperback)

I have read dozens of books in this genre. This is the worst. This book is more likley to erode wealth than protect it. Poorly organized, lots of bad advice.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Solid Effort!, May 7, 2001

By 

Rolf Dobelli "getAbstract" (Switzerland) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Staying Wealthy: Strategies for Protecting Your Assets (Mass Market Paperback)

Brian H. Breuel gives detailed advice about estate planning, business succession, investing, and long-term care. He argues that many wealth-eroding pitfalls can be avoided with diligent planning and professional advice. He covers common problems, including dying without a will, outdated wills, and business succession. Keeping your business's value in your family's hands requires planning well in advance of your retirement or death. The well-organized advice here is detailed enough to be useful to sophisticated readers. We [...] recommend this book to anyone looking for detailed guidance about estate planning and business succession. [[...] note: The legal matters covered are based entirely on U.S. law.]