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Many estate planning attorneys contend that all of their clients need to acquire a Revocable Living Trust. Other attorneys consider Revocable Living Trusts as it’s a waste of time and money, and rather insist on Last Wills and Testaments. Actually, Revocable Living Trusts need to be thought-out on a case by case basis, for this reason automatically suggesting them is just as absurd as summarily disregarding them. To establish if a Revocable Living Trust is appropriate for you, your estate planning attorney needs to ask you the following:
What Types Of Assets Do You Own?
When you have only a couple of financial institutional accounts, some life insurance, and a 401(k) retirement, a Revocable Living Trust is most likely excessive. Instead, a Durable Power of Attorney and an Advance Medical Directive need to be sufficient in designating an individual to assist you in managing your finances, should you become debilitated. Certainly, you’ll also require a Last Will and Testament to manage your assets following your passing. And when you are the owner of real estate, a Durable Power of Attorney is going to enable the agent designated in the document to manage your properties, when you become no longer able to do so.
Are You a Business Owner?
Revocable Living Trusts could be a lot stronger than Last Wills and Testaments when it comes down to a family business, since they allow a successor Trustee to keep managing the company should you become debilitated or pass away. However, with wills, probate courts name a Personal Representative in making those decisions, in which could be equally time-consuming and expensive.
Are You Going to Want to Include Minor Beneficiaries?
When you want more minor beneficiaries (people under eight teen) to inherit some or all your estate, you can create a testamentary trust, in which could be decreed by a Last Will and Testament, or you can set up a Revocable Living Trust throughout your life. But there is a primary difference between the 2 approaches. Specifically: modifications made to the named Trustees in testamentary trusts established by a Last Will and Testament might need the supervision of a probate court, whereas modifications to Revocable Living Trusts do not require such supervision.
Are You Troubled About Privacy?
The minute a Last Will and Testament gets filed for probate, it turns into a public court document that anyone can access, allowing just about anyone access to information concerning your heirs, your assets when you pass away, and any unpaid debts you’ve left behind. Conversely, a Revocable Living Trust is private documentation that never a matter of the public. Consequently, the only individuals entitled to examine a copy of your trust following your passing, are the beneficiaries and the successor Trustees you have designated in you trust agreement. Therefore, details regarding your heirs and assets are inaccessible to prying family members, friends and neighbors.
Are You Concerned About a Will Challenge?
A lot of attorneys believe the private disposition of Revocable Living Trusts assists in preventing wills from being challenged. In the end, no one is probable to challenge contents they have no knowledge of. However, a will going through probate might be a better option in specific states that restrict the time period which individuals could contest a will, to 1 to 2 months following it being probated. On the other hand, the time period in which to challenge a trust will range from 6 months to multiple years, giving potential trust antagonists plenty of time to agonize the conditions and start legal action. In summary: there are pros and cons to getting Revocable Living Trust. A knowledgeable estate planning attorney should consider how a trust impacts your personal circumstance, prior to advising you whether to welcome this option.
Source:
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Garber, J. (2020, December 29). 5 questions to determine if a Revocable trust is right for you. Retrieved May 10, 2021, from https://www.thebalance.com/do-you-really-need-a-revocable-living-trust-3505194
