Wills and Trusts are important for every person to know about. Before beginning a will or a trust, you should know the difference between them and how they are beneficial to you. Depending on your circumstances, one may suit you better than the other.
A trust allows you to be the grantor who manages your trust assets during your lifetime. Trusts also allow provisions to be made for a successor trustee to take charge in your place. A living trust is a very popular choice. A trust doesn’t need to go through probate proceedings. It helps you save costs when dealing with out-of-state property. There’s not an automatic court supervisor that will deal with any disputes over the trust. When you pass away, the trust stays private. There are more costs to prepare, manage, and fund a trust than it does to prepare a will.
A will is a legal document allowing you to distribute your property to the people of your choice. Wills also allow you to designate beneficiaries who will receive specific items that you want them to have. A will is always subject to probate proceedings. It does fall into the out-of-state property proceedings within that state. They provide court supervision for handling beneficiary issues, as well as creditor disputes. At the time of your death, your will becomes public record. There are some taxes that are put upon a will, but these taxes are put on trusts as well. Most people pay a lawyer to help draw up a will. Wills main cost is to have them probated. When dealing with a will, you must have an executer, a person who makes sure that what you want done is being done.
A will, therefore, comes into effect after you pass away. A living trust begins once you have established it. A living trust benefits you while you are alive. If you have a living trust, you must make a “Pour-over Will” at the same time. This will pour-over all the assets from your trust into the will you drew up when you pass away. Trusts help to keep track of your property before and after you pass away. If, by chance, you are unable to keep track of your trust, it is placed in the care of a successor trustee. There are also joint living trusts. These trusts incorporate both the husband and the wife’s assets into one specific trust, instead of two.
Be sure not to get a will and a living will confused. While a will states where you want your property and items to go; a living will defines your beliefs and wishes about your health such as being kept alive on artificial life support, or not.
A trust and a will are two very important documents to consider when helping save your family and loved ones the pain of dealing with costs and fighting. In both trusts and wills, you need to be extremely specific on the items you have and where you want them to go.
