June 29, 2018October 25, 2023

Funding a Trust

After creating a trust, you need to fund it. That does not have to be a difficult process.

One of the many problems of “discount” trusts, either from a trust service or an online document service, is that they never get around to funding the trust. When the settlor passes away, the trust does not work as intended, because there are no assets in it to be distributed according to the terms of the trust. The time and money spent creating the trust were all wasted.

Trusts must be funded. That does not mean just putting money in them. It means transferring the title of property to the trust, as the Times Herald-Record discusses in “How to transfer assets to a trust.”

Transferring title of property differs for different types of assets. However, it does not need to be difficult for any asset type. It is mostly a matter of filling out the right paperwork and getting that paperwork to the proper authority. For example, when you purchased your home, the title was transferred to you and registered with your local Register of Deeds. You just need to do the same thing for the trust this time.

There is someone who can help you make sure that your trust is properly funded. That is an estate planning attorney who knows how to transfer title in different asset types. This is one reason why it is better to hire an attorney to create a trust, instead of using a cheaper service. It helps make sure that your trust gets funded and will be effective when it is needed.

Reference: Times Herald-Record (May 31, 2018) “How to transfer assets to a trust.”

June 16, 2018December 13, 2025

Why You Need an Estate Planning Attorney

Why You Need an Estate Planning Attorney

You might think that you do not need professional assistance for your estate plan because you know who you want to get what. There is more to estate planning than that.

It is actually easy to create an estate plan for yourself. You can simply write your own will, directing who should get what pieces of property. If you execute that will properly with witnesses and signatures, your will can be probated.

If you are not certain that is the best idea and would like a little bit more help, download some prepared forms to fill out from an online service at a low cost. The ease of doing that might make you think that an estate planning attorney is not necessary. However, there are other reasons to see an attorney, as the Huntsville Item points out in “Do you really need an estate planning attorney?”

Those other reasons include:

The estate planning attorney knows about property law and how different types of property are handled differently by courts. If you do not get this correct in your will, your estate can face difficulties.
There are different types of estate planning documents that do different things. Estate planning attorneys can help you pick the right ones for your unique circumstances.
Estate taxes are still a concern at the federal level for many people and in several states. A professional is needed to properly plan around them.
The attorney can also help craft your estate plan in a way that compliments your other financial goals, often including paying less in taxes.

Reference: The Huntsville Item (May 21, 2018) “Do you really need an estate planning attorney?”

June 13, 2018

Your Executor Is Important

One of the simplest things that you can do to help prevent your estate from facing difficulties, is to make the right choice about who your executor should be.

People who get wills, normally put a lot of thought into how they would like their property to be distributed after they pass away. It is very important to them, that their wishes are carried out and everything goes to the appropriate heirs. However, often relatively little thought is put into who should make sure it all happens.

The person in charge is the executor. Instead of thinking about whether the person they are choosing is the right person, many people just pick a close friend or relative. This can be a very big mistake, if the person does not know what they are doing, as Forbes points out in "Choosing an Executor for Your Estate."

The executor of your estate will have a lot of work to do. There are often important tax decisions that need to be made quickly. The executor needs to determine what assets you have at the time you pass away. However, they cannot just give those assets to the people you want to have them.

First, they need to go to probate court and be officially appointed to administer the estate. They will then need to determine, if you had any debt when you passed away. That debt normally needs to be paid out of your assets, before any property can be distributed.

Your executor needs to be someone who not only has the time to serve in the capacity, but also can handle administrative and financial tasks well. Put some thought into this important decision.

Reference: Forbes (May 16, 2018) "Choosing an Executor for Your Estate."

May 4, 2018April 27, 2024

Use a Trust to Avoid Disputes

If you know that your family is likely to fight over your estate, you can limit the fight greatly, by using a trust instead of a will.

Many family fights over estates are predictable. People know when their family members do not get along and are likely to fight over their inheritances. They know that “unequal” inheritances are more likely to trigger trouble, too.

When it comes to estate planning, it is important to understand that those fights quite often result in protracted court cases over the estate. This is especially true, if the main instrument used to distribute the estate is a will that has to go through probate by its very legal nature. Some of this mayhem may be avoided by using a trust instead as the Times Herald-Record discusses in “Trusts avoid inheritance disputes among family members.”

Since trusts do not go through probate, there is no open probate case for family members to easily file a claim. That in and of itself makes a trust much less likely to lead to litigation. It is also easier to use the trust document itself to create language making family fights less likely. Even if there are fights, an independent trustee can often referee those fights and thus avoid any litigation.

It is nearly impossible to completely guarantee that no family fight will ever occur over an estate. An estate planning attorney can help make those fights much less likely, by creating a good trust.

Reference: Times Herald-Record (April 5, 2018) “Trusts avoid inheritance disputes among family members.”

March 29, 2018

Harper Lee’s Will Unveiled

Harper Lee valued her privacy while she was alive. Her will suggests that she also values it in death.

After writing To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee mostly kept out of the public eye. She did not release another book for decades and made very few appearances.

She died in 2016. Journalists and literary historians have been attempting to piece together details of the author's life, but they have met with little success. She was a private person and those who knew her have not been willing to talk very much.

Lee’s will has been unsealed but it does not reveal very much either, as Al.com reports in "Harper Lee's will is unsealed but questions about the legend of American literature remain."

Lee's will directs that all of her assets, including literary property, be put into a previously created trust. Details about the trust are not publicly known. There does not appear to be a way to make them public. The trust's beneficiaries and trustee are not known.

What Lee created is known as a pour-over will. It is a simple way to have assets transferred to a trust, after someone passes away. Since trusts do not have to go through probate and are private, this is a great method to use for people who do not want the details of their estates known to the public, as Lee apparently did not.

Reference: Al.com (Feb. 27, 2018) "Harper Lee's will is unsealed but questions about the legend of American literature remain."

Suggested Key Words: Wills, Trusts

March 19, 2018

A Big Myth Concerning Trusts

If you do too much reading online about the difference between wills and trusts, then you are likely to think of the two as something that you have one or the other. That is a myth.

One of the key concerns for people planning their estates today, is whether they should use a will or a trust. Everyone seems to have an opinion about which one of the two main estate planning vehicles is better for general purposes. The two are often discussed, as if they are oppositional.

If you do some research and decide you want to get a trust, then you might go to an online service, pay a fee and download a form to create a trust. The problem? Getting a trust does not mean you should not get a will. You still need a will, as Lake County News discusses in "The difference between a trust and a will."

It is likely that when you pass away you will have some assets that for one reason or another were never put into your trust. Those assets will need to be distributed by your estate and often under the guidance of the probate court. You need a will so what you want done with those assets can be done.

Often that will is only a “pour-over will” that directs that everything should be transferred to your trust. However, there are other things you might also need to accomplish with a will, such as directing who should be appointed as a proper guardian for your minor children. You also might have some assets you do not want to go through a trust for other reasons, for which a will would be appropriate.

The best way to make sure you have all the documents you need in your estate plan, is to hire an estate planning attorney to draft your plan.

Reference: Lake County News (Feb. 24, 2018) "The difference between a trust and a will."

Building Legacies that Last Estate Planning and Elder Law

Tag: Wills and Trusts Bethesda