The human side of wealth planning. Hidden Basis is a biweekly newsletter from Michael P. Rapps, Esq., CFP®, AEP® on the part of estate planning that never shows up on a balance sheet — fairness, control, family dynamics, and what the wealth is actually for. Written for advisors, CPAs and the families they serve.
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All issues
- The Money Stories You Inherited
Where our beliefs about money actually come from — and why the plan sits on top of one nobody named - The Successor Trustee Nobody Prepared
The one qualification we never screen for — and why it decides whether the role survives the person - The Strings Attached
When protection becomes control — and how the structures we build to guard a family can quietly corrode it - The Question Underneath the Plan
What We Mean When We Say a Plan Is Effective, and Why the Answer Is Harder Than It Looks - Same Words, Different Meaning
The Scripts We Carry Into Every Client Meeting — and the Cost of Not Knowing They’re There - Enter the Danger
The Question That Might Get You Fired — and Why You Should Ask It Anyway - Achievement vs. Fulfillment
What We’re Actually Optimizing For, and What Happens When the Plan Works - The Wall That Isn’t Technical
Why Some Planning Conversations Stall When the Numbers Make Sense - The Values Nobody Wrote Down
Why Spouses Disagree About Estate Plans When the Tax Strategy Is Already Settled - The Title You’re Passing Down
Inheritance, Heritage, and the Difference That Determines Whether a Plan Holds - The Need Behind the Decision
Why Clients Do What They Do—Even When the Numbers Say Otherwise - Gifts, Gravity, and the Meteor Nobody Saw Coming
Why Well-Intentioned Wealth Transfers Can Destabilize the People They Were Meant to Help - Which Hat Are You Wearing?
The Three-Circle Model and Why Most Family Business Conflict Is a Case of Mistaken Identity
Hidden Basis comes out every other Friday. Attorney advertising.