The taxation of estates is in the headlines again as President Biden and several members of congress have introduced proposals to change the law. Possible changes have included a reduction of the estate exemption from $11,700,000 to $3,500,000; increasing the top estate tax rate from 40% to 45%; taking away the basis step up at death for individuals with gains exceeding $1,000,000; and eliminating or significantly changing strategies involving trusts and the use of discounts in transactions with ... [Continue Reading]
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Dan Edwards, CPA
Director of Estate Planning
507.206.2809
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Professional Biography
Dan Edwards serves as the Director of Estate Planning as part of the Carlson Capital Management team, and as a Senior Tax Advisor as with CCM Tax & Trust Administration, a wholly-owned affiliate of Carlson Capital Management. As the Director of Estate Planning, Dan works closely with the CCM advisory team to deliver estate planning expertise and proactive tax planning as part of the fully integrated wealth management experience. As a member of the Tax Team, Dan has responsibility for preparation, review, and completion of individual and trust tax returns and tax projections. Dan also participates in client meetings and serves as a tax resource for clients, providing service both individually and collaboratively with other advisors, to develop customized recommendations.
Prior to joining CCM, Dan spent 24 years in the Senior Tax Director role with RSM US, LLP, where he was responsible for leading the successful growth of the trust and estate tax practice for their Rochester, Minnesota, office. He has extensive knowledge and expertise in the tax planning and compliance sector through his service as the tax director for individual, trust, estate, and corporate clients. Dan is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants as well as the Minnesota Society of Certified Public Accountants.
Dan is a graduate of the University of Iowa where he earned his Bachelor of Science in accounting. He enjoys volunteering and has recently partnered with Community Food Response, Feed My Starving Children, and several other organizations in the Rochester area. Outside of his work life and volunteer activities, Dan enjoys spending time outdoors and riding his bike. Dan and his wife Stacy reside in Rochester, Minnesota, and have three grown children.
Personal Thoughts
As soon as I started my first job after college my mother gave me some great advice--she said, “It’s not now much money you make, it’s how much you save." Over time, I began to see the additional benefit of my savings from the compound growth of the interest and dividends.
Several years ago, I decided to run a marathon, but after committing to it began to question whether I could actually do it. A friend of mine advised me to start training early and to increase my training mileage by 10% each week. I wasn’t sure I could complete the marathon, but I knew I could run 10% more than the prior week. After about four months of weekly 10% increases, my training runs were long enough that I knew completing the marathon was possible. I also began to realize how many things in life increase by compounding: knowledge, learning, relationships, and building good habits, to name a few.
It’s important to take the time to make sure all of the non-financial goals in your life also compound in growth if you believe, “The real measure of your wealth is how much you’d be worth if you lost all your money."
The one thing that has impressed me the most as I've joined CCM is the collaborative team approach we engage in to serve our clients. Having six or seven financial advisors, each with different areas of expertise, work on a client’s financial plan is clearly the best approach - producing results similar to the concept of compounding.
Dan Edwards, CPA
Director of Estate Planning
Director of Estate Planning
