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Home » Estate Planning » Keep It Simple With a Living Trust

Keep It Simple With a Living Trust

July 8, 2021 by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law

living trustPeople sometimes think that a will is a simple device that will facilitate efficient asset transfers.  By contrast, they may believe a trust is something that is very complicated. In fact, if you want to keep things simple and provide timely inheritances to your heirs, you should definitely consider a living trust.

The Probate Process

When a will is used, the executor cannot act independently. The estate would be opened with the probate court, and this court would provide supervision during the administration process.

A filing fee must be paid, and the executor is entitled to remuneration. In many cases, the executor will bring in an accountant and an attorney, so there are professional fees.

In some instances, asset liquidation may be part of the equation.  This means there will be appraisal and liquidation expenses. When you add in the incidentals, it has been estimated that between three and seven percent of the estate will typically be consumed by these probate costs.

No inheritances are distributed until the estate has been probated and closed by the court.  In most jurisdictions, that may take a minimum of eight or nine months.  Another negative is a loss of privacy.  Probate means your financial records are available to the general public.

Living Trust Administration

If you have a living trust, you would act as the trustee while you are alive and well, so you would maintain complete control of the assets.  We are talking about a revocable trust.  That means you retain the right to amend, modify, even revoke the trust in its entirety.  That adds to your ability to control your plan.

When you establish the trust, you would name a successor to administer the trust after your passing.  Equally important, your successor trustee is also empowered to assume the role in the event of your incapacity and use trust assets for your care and well-being.

The trustee would follow your instructions when the time comes and distribute the assets to your designated beneficiaries.  If your assets are properly re-titled into the name of the trust and beneficiary designations are properly established, probate would not be necessary.  The drawbacks we described above would be avoided.

Spendthrift Protections

A major benefit of a living trust is the ability to protect a beneficiary that is not prepared to handle a large, lump-sum inheritance. You can include a spendthrift provision in your plan so the beneficiary has no direct access to the principal after your death.

At your death, the trust becomes irrevocable.  Without spendthrift safeguards, creditors of the beneficiary could “step into their shoes” and seek recovery of what they are owed.  Since the beneficiary would not be able to reach the principal, the creditors would be in the same position.

With regard to the possibility of reckless spending, you can instruct the trustee to distribute a certain amount each month until the beneficiary reaches a certain age. This is one possible arrangement.  There are a large number of other options.  You have the option of retaining total control of the nature of the distributions.

Shared Living Trust

If you and your spouse own a lot of property jointly, and you intend to leave your respective ownership interests one another, a living trust can be a very simple estate planning solution.

You and your spouse would be co-trustees while both of you are still alive, and the survivor would be the sole trustee. When one spouse passes away, the surviving spouse would become the sole trustee and control the shared property.

Property that is owned separately can also be conveyed into this type of trust. The surviving spouse can be the beneficiary, but this is not required.

Download Our Free Worksheet!

We have prepared an estate planning worksheet that you can complete to gain a more thorough understanding of the process. It is being offered free of charge, and you can get your copy right now if you head over to our worksheet access page.

Attend a Free Webinar!

You are here because you are interested in learning more about estate planning, and we have some great learning opportunities coming up in the near future.

Attorney Larry Parman is conducting a series of webinars, and they cover the most important topics in a concise, down-to-earth manner. The sessions are being offered free of charge, and you don’t have to leave your house to join us, so this is a time investment that will yield dividends.

You can see the schedule if you visit our Oklahoma City estate planning webinar page, and when you identify the session you would like to attend, follow the simple instructions to register.

 

 

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Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Founder and Owner at Parman & Easterday
After helping his own family deal with a lengthy probate and the IRS following his father’s untimely death in a farm accident, Larry Parman made a decision to help families create effective estate plans designed to reduce taxes, minimize legal interference with the transfer of assets to one’s heirs, and protect his clients’ assets from predators and creditors.
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
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Filed Under: Estate Planning Tagged With: living trust, Probate Avoidance, spendthrift protection planning

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