Wills & Trusts
You’ll encounter a myriad of decisions throughout the estate planning process. The first of many you’ll encounter includes whether you should create a living trust or a will.
Having a firm understanding of the difference between a living trust and a will should occur before deciding. One of the most significant differences includes that a living trust helps you avoid probate. However, when you have a will, you’ll still go through the probate process.
Do these facts surprise you? It isn’t uncommon for those who are new to estate planning to believe that, when they have a will, they’ll receive protection from probate. The main reason is that your will stipulates that their assets will be allocated as they wish. Therefore, why would they need to go through probate?
The problem is that, when you have a will, this document does not legally transfer your asset. All this document does is declare your wishes. So, when your assets go through probate, that’s how states create a legal transfer.
These facts are just some of the many you’ll need to understand before you begin making decisions regarding your estate plan.
One thing you must keep in mind is a living trust will not guarantee your estate won’t undergo probate. However, if it’s set up and funded adequately, these steps could help prevent probate from occurring.
Your will goes before a probate judge for review and to:
- Determine the legitimacy of the will.
- Ensure the distribution and transfer of your estate occurs legally.
- Create a timeframe for the payment of your debt utilizing your assets.
Probate courts are kept quite busy due to the number of people who put off estate planning. Countless family members are sitting in limbo while waiting for the probate process to reach completion.
It isn’t uncommon for those who are creating a will to have concerns about the government seizing their property following their passing. When people create a will, they want 100% of their assets to go to either their family or whomever they name as their heirs.
Estate planning means making informed decisions to ensure what you want to happen is occurring. Therefore, you must get your hands on the best information. We’ve created a free estate planning and living trust guide for you to download instantly. Download it right now instead of procrastinating another minute.