September 2020 | ||
These are my most commonly asked questions that slow people down: Do I need a trust AND a will? A lawyer will advise you on this, but the misunderstanding comes from not knowing that a will has a very short, useful life — typically from the date of death until probate is done. This is typically about a year. On the other hand, a revocable trust benefits you from the time you become incapacitated or die until the final item of the trust property is distributed to the last beneficiary, which could be a century later. For most of my clients, who usually own real estate and whose estates exceed $500,000, they benefit considerably by having a revocable living trust. Then why have a will at all? In most cases, you want it because a will ensures that you make decisions about your beneficiaries, rather than the state; establishes where you live and what law applies; names guardians for minor children and brings into the trust smaller assets that typically aren’t in the trust (your car, smaller balance checking and savings accounts, etc.). Am I stuck with my decisions? So long as you are alive and remain of sound mind, you can destroy and/or change your estate planning decisions. You are not locking yourself for life into decisions made in your younger years. If you have any estate planning questions or need a referral to an estate planning attorney, please reach out. |