In the mid-1950s I did my first consultation with a family-business owner who had the it's-time-to-transfer-my-business-to-the-kids itch. And one thing is certain, more than 50 years later, nothing has changed. The two biggest transfer fears of the 1950s are still going strong at the beginning of the 21st century. What are they? The number two fear is taxes-estate taxes that is. And the all-time number one transfer-to-the-kids fear? Control! Yes, and get this, almost all owners (19 out of 20 to be exact) are frozen with fear when it comes to passing control to their own flesh and blood. So much so that many go to the big business in the sky and force their surviving families to overpay their estate tax. Why? Well, they held control (more than 50 percent) of the company's common stock right up to the day they died.
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