Do I Need a Last Will and Testament?

Do I Need a Last Will and Testament?

Estate planning encompasses everything from planning for property distribution at death to preparing for incapacity, tax planning and guardian planning for minor children. An experienced estate planning attorney is involved with far more than a last will and testament. However, this is what most people think of when they sit down for their first meeting.

A recent article titled “Last Will and Testament” from mondaq examines what the last will and testament does and how it differs from trusts. These two are only part of a comprehensive estate plan.

A will is only effective upon death. Its directions are not followed while living or if a person becomes incapacitated. A will does not avoid probate, rather it ensures assets go to the people as directed by the person making the will. Without a will, assets are distributed according to the laws of the state, usually determined by kinship. A certain percentage will go to a spouse and another percentage will go to biological children. Unmarried partners and stepchildren have no legal right of inheritance.

The will is also the legal document used to name an executor, the person responsible for carrying out the directions in the will and managing the estate. The executor has a long list of duties, from making sure the will is validated by the court during probate to applying for an estate tax identification number with the IRS, opening an estate bank account, notifying Social Security of the decedent’s passing, paying debts, paying taxes for the individual and for the estate and distributing property,

The will is used to name a guardian for minor children. When planning has been done correctly, the guardian is provided with information about the children’s lives and financial planning has been done for the children’s support and for their education. A trust is usually used to hold assets for the benefit of the children, with a trustee named to manage funds.

Wills go through probate, which varies by state. Once the will is filed in court, it becomes a public document. Heirs must be notified, even those not included in the will. An alternative is creating and placing assets in a trust to protect privacy and manage and distribute property.

Trusts are not just for wealthy people. They are used to maintain privacy, as the assets in the trust do not pass through probate. The trustee is in charge of the trust and making distributions to beneficiaries. There are many different types of trusts; an experienced estate planning attorney will be able to recommend the optimal one for each client based on their situation.

The trust is effective upon its creation and is a separate legal entity and is also used to protect assets from creditors. Trusts are more complicated than traditional bank accounts. However, their ability to protect assets and maintain privacy make them a valuable part of any estate plan.

If a person becomes incapacitated, the trust remains in effect. If the trust is a revocable trust, meaning the grantor is able to change its terms as long as they are living and the grantor becomes incapacitated, a successor trustee can step in and manage the trust without court intervention.

Trusts do require diligence to create. Trust must be funded, meaning assets need to be retitled so they are owned by the trust. New accounts may need to be open, if retitling is not possible. Beneficiaries need to be established and terms need to be set. The trust can be created to fund a college education or for general use. However, terms need to be established.

A comprehensive estate plan protects the individual while they are living and protects the family after they have passed. It is a gift to those you love.

Reference: mondaq (Nov. 16, 2022) “Last Will and Testament”

Do I Need a Trust, or a Last Will and Testament?

Do I Need a Trust, or a Last Will and Testament?

Whether to have a will or a trust or both is often discussed when embarking on the estate planning process. Arriving at the answer, as discussed in a recent article, “Personal needs, preferences drive estate planning,” from The News-Enterprise, requires a closer look at each individual’s situation.

The last will and testament doesn’t take effect until two events occur: the person who created the will, the testator, has died, and the will has been filed with the local court. The will is used to distribute assets owned solely by the testator. Jointly owned property, property with a named beneficiary and trust-owned property passes to new owners outside of the will.

After the probate case is opened in the court, the will becomes a public record and is accessible in person and online. Other documents from the estate, which might include inventories of assets and information about property values, is also available to the public.

If it’s unsettling to think about strangers and scammers looking at these documents after you die, remember your estate planning attorney can explain your options, including trusts and beneficiary designations.

The executor is the person named in the will to distribute the estate. There are certain time restrictions to be aware of, depending on your state. All the necessary tasks, from distributing assets to selling a home and whatever instructions are in the will, need to be accomplished by a certain time. An estate planning attorney will help you map out a timeline.

A revocable will is not a purely testamentary document. It takes effect once it is established. A revocable trust can be thought of as in-between a will and a power of attorney. Trusts are not filed with the court, during life or after death, so their contents remain private.

The trustee—the person named to manage the trust—follows the directions in the trust documents to manage the property. If the trust directs that property be distributed immediately after death, the trustee does not have to wait for the will to be probated. The beneficiaries receive their inheritance as per the terms of the trust.

A grantor who is leaving property to children may find the advantages of a trust make it a better tool than a will. Funds can be allocated solely for college expenses or distributed only when certain milestones are reached. Note, however, that an inheritance trust can be created under a will, too. It is known as a “testamentary trust” in that case.

Estate planning is not a one-size-fits-all process. The best approach for one person may be completely wrong for another. An experienced estate planning attorney walks clients through the process, so they are able to make informed decisions and create an estate plan to work best for themselves and their loved ones.

Reference: The News-Enterprise (Nov. 12, 2022) “Personal needs, preferences drive estate planning”

What Is the Point of a Trust?

What Is the Point of a Trust?

A trust is an agreement made when a person, referred to as the trustor or grantor, gives a third party, known as the trustee, the authority to hold assets for the trust beneficiaries. The trustee is in charge of the trust and responsible for executing the trust’s instructions as per the language in the trust, explains a recent article from The Skim, “What is a Trust? (Spoiler: They’re Not Just for the Wealthy).”

Some examples of how trusts are used: if the grantor doesn’t want beneficiaries to have access to funds until they reach a certain age, the trustee will not distribute anything until the age as directed by the trust. The funds could also be solely used for the beneficiaries’ health care needs or education or whatever expense the grantor has named, the trustee decides when the funds should be released.

Trusts are not one-size-fits-all. There are many to choose from. For instance, if you wanted the bulk of your assets to go to your grandchildren, you might use a Generation-Skipping Trust. If you think your home’s value may skyrocket after you die, you might want to consider a Qualified Personal Residence Trust (QPRT) to reduce taxes.

Trusts fall into a few categories:

Testamentary Trust vs. Living Trust

A testamentary trust is known as a “trust under will” and is created based on provisions in the will after the grantor dies. A testamentary trust fund can be used to make gifts to charities or provide lifetime income for loved ones.

In most cases, trusts don’t have to go through the probate process, that is, being validated by the court before beneficiaries can receive their inheritance. However, because the testamentary trust is tied to the will, it is subject to probate. Your heirs may have to wait until the probate process is completed to receive their inheritance. This varies by state, so ask an estate planning attorney in your state.

Living trusts are created while you are living and are also known as revocable trusts. As the grantor, you may make as many changes as you like to the trust terms while living. Once you die, the trust becomes an irrevocable trust and the terms cannot be changed. There’s no need for the trust to go through probate and beneficiaries receive inheritances as per the directions in the trust.

What are the key benefits of creating a trust? A trust doesn’t always need to go through probate and gives you greater control over the assets. If you create an irrevocable trust and fund it while living, your assets are removed from your probate estate, which means whatever assets are moved into the trust are not subject to estate taxes.

Are there any reasons not to create a trust? There are costs associated with creating a trust. The trust must also be funded, meaning ownership documents like titles for a car or deeds for a house have to be revised to place the asset under the control of the trust. The same is true for stocks, bank accounts and any other asset used to fund the trust.

For gaining more control over your assets, minimizing estate taxes and making life easier for those you love after you pass, trusts are a valuable tool. Speak with your estate planning attorney to find out which trust works best for your situation. Your estate plan and any trusts should complement each other.

Reference: The Skim (Oct. 26, 2022) “What is a Trust? (Spoiler: They’re Not Just for the Wealthy)”

Who Is the Best Person for Executor?

Who Is the Best Person for Executor?

Several critical estate planning documents give another person—known as an agent or personal representative—the legal right to act on another person’s behalf. They include wills, trusts, powers of attorney and advance health care directives, as described in a recent article titled “The nomination of trustees, executors and agents” from Lake County Record-Bee.

Your will is only activated after you die. The will and executor then have to be approved by the court. Many people think being named as an executor confers instant authority, but this is not true. Only when the will has been deemed valid by the court, does the executor have the power to act on behalf of the decedent.

After death, the court is petitioned for a court order appointing the executor and then letters testamentary are signed by the appointed executor. An executor then becomes active as an officer of the court with a fiduciary duty to act as personal representative of the decedent’s estate.

If the named person declines to serve, the will should have a secondary person named as executor, who can then request the appointment be validated by the court. Others can petition the court to be appointed. However, it is best to name two people of your choice in your will.

A trust is a separate legal entity with a trustee who is in charge of the trust and its assets. If a revocable will is created, the trustee is usually the same person who has the trust created, also known as the grantor. For an irrevocable trust, the trustee is someone other than the grantor. The appointment does not become official until the appointment is accepted, usually through signing a document or by the successor trustee taking action on behalf of the trust.

Just as an executor might not accept their role, a trustee can decide not to accept the nomination. However, once they do, they have a fiduciary duty to put the well-being of the trust first and manage it properly. You can’t accept the role and then walk away without serious consequences.

Powers of attorney are used while a person is living. The power of attorney’s effective date depends upon what kind of POA it is. A durable power of attorney is effective the moment it is signed. A springing POA sets forth terms upon which the POA becomes active, usually incapacity. The challenge with a Springing POA is that approval by the court may be required, usually with proof from a treating physician concerning the person’s condition.

Similarly, the health care power of attorney appoints a person who acts on behalf of another as their agent for health issues. They can decline the position. However, once they agree to take on the position, they are responsible for their actions.

If the POAs decline to serve and there is no secondary person named, or if all named POAs decline to serve, the family will need to apply for a conservatorship (also known as guardianship). This is a lengthy and expensive process requiring a thorough investigation of the situation and the person who needs representation. It can be contested if the person does not want to give up their independence, or by family members who feel it is not needed.

These are commonly used terms in estate planning. However, they are not always understood clearly. Your estate planning attorney will be able to address specific responsibilities and requirements, since every state has laws and appointments vary by state.

Reference: Lake Country Record-Bee (July 30, 2022) “The nomination of trustees, executors and agents”

Why Is Beneficiary Designation Important?

Why Is Beneficiary Designation Important?

The beneficiary designation will always supersede language of your will. Neglecting to know which assets have beneficiary designations and failing to update the designations can undo even the best estate plan.

The beneficiary designation for your life insurance or retirement account custodian provides an opportunity to tell the company who is to receive life insurance proceeds or retirement savings upon your death, explains a recent article titled “This Important Estate Planning Step is Often Missed” from Coeur d’Alene/Post Falls Press. If these are not coordinated with a last will and testament, the results are problematic at best, and worse, financially, and emotionally devastating.

This epic fail comes in many different forms, but the most common is when a life insurance policy has never been updated and an ex-spouse receives the policy proceeds. The rules differ between retirement accounts and life insurance and can be impacted by various state and federal laws (and the divorce decree, if the life insurance policy was included). However, for the most part, the ex will receive the proceeds and litigation will not succeed.

Another common beneficiary designation mistake is when a person has created a living trust or revocable trust to prevent assets from going through probate when they die. Probate can take many months to complete and there are several strategies used to take assets out of the probate estate.

When the living trust is established and assets are transferred into the trust, those assets do not pass through probate.

However, if a person (or married couple) established a living trust and fails to list both primary and secondary beneficiaries for life insurance and/or retirement accounts, it is entirely possible that the assets will go through probate.

Take the time to make an inventory of all assets and accounts. Determine which ones have a beneficiary designation and find out who is named as the beneficiary. If your retirement accounts and life insurance policies were established decades ago, this is especially important.

Failing to coordinate beneficiary designations with your estate plan could undermine your wishes. Review these items with your estate planning attorney to avoid these and many other potential pitfalls.

Reference: Coeur d’Alene/Post Falls Press (May 23, 2022) “This Important Estate Planning Step is Often Missed”

What are Benefits of Putting Money into a Trust?

What are Benefits of Putting Money into a Trust?

For the average person, knowing how a revocable trust, irrevocable trust and testamentary trust work will help you start thinking of how a trust might help achieve your estate planning goals. A recent article from The Street, “3 Powerful Types of Trusts that Can Work for You,” provides a good foundation.

The Revocable Trust is one of the more flexible trusts. The person who creates the trust can change anything about the trust at any time. You may add or remove assets, beneficiaries or sell property owned by the trust. Most people who create these trusts, grantors, name themselves as the trustee, allowing themselves to use their property, even though it is owned in the trust.

A Revocable Trust needs to have a successor trustee to manage the assets in the trust for when the grantor dies or becomes incapacitated. The transfer of ownership of the trust and its assets from the grantor to the successor trustee is a way to protect assets in case of disability.

At death, a revocable trust becomes an Irrevocable Trust, which cannot be easily revoked or changed. The successor trustee follows the instructions in the trust document to manage assets and distribute assets.

The revocable trust provides flexibility. However, assets in a revocable trust are considered part of the taxable estate, which means they are subject to estate taxes (both federal and state) when the owner dies. A revocable trust does not offer any protection against creditors, nor will it shield assets from lawsuits.

If the revocable trust’s owner has any debts or legal settlements when they die, the court could award funds from the value of the trust and beneficiaries will only receive what’s left.

A Testamentary Trust is a trust created in connection with instructions contained in a last will and testament. A good example is a trust for a child outlining when assets will be distributed to them by the trustee and for what purposes the trustee is permitted to make the distribution. Funds in this kind of trust are usually used for health, education, maintenance and supports, often referred to as “HEMS.”

For families with relatively modest estates, a trust can be a valuable tool to protect children’s futures. Assets held in trust for the lifetime of a child are protected in the event of the child’s going through a divorce because the child’s inheritance is not subject to equitable distribution when not comingled.

Many people buy life insurance for their families, but they don’t always know that proceeds from the life insurance policy may be subject to estate taxes. An insurance trust, known as an ILIT (Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust) is a smart way to remove life insurance from your taxable estate.

Whether you can have an ILIT depends on policy ownership at the time of the insured’s death. In most cases, the insurance trust must be the owner and the insurance trust must be named as the beneficiary. If the trust is not drafted before the application for and purchase of the life insurance policy, it may be possible to transfer an existing policy to the trust. However, if this is done after the purchase, there may be some challenges and requirements. The owner must live more than three years after the transfer for the policy proceeds to be removed from the taxable estate.

Trusts may seem complex and overwhelming. However, an estate planning attorney will draft them properly and make sure that they are used appropriately to protect your assets and your family.

Reference: The Street (May 13, 2022) “3 Powerful Types of Trusts that Can Work for You”

What Does Estate Plan Include?

What Does Estate Plan Include?

The will, formally known as a last will and testament, is just one part of a complete estate plan, explains the article “Essential components of an estate plan” from Vail Daily. Consider it a starting point. A will can be very straight-forward and simple. However, it needs to address your unique situation and meet the legal requirements of your state.

If your family includes grown children and your goal is to leave everything to your spouse, but then make sure your spouse then leaves everything to the children, you need to make sure your will accomplishes this. However, what will happen if one of your children dies before you? Do you want their share to go to their children, your grandchildren? If the grandchildren are minors, someone will need to manage the money for them. Perhaps you want the balance of the inheritance to be distributed among the adult children. What if your surviving spouse remarries and then dies before the new spouse? How will your children’s inheritance be protected?

Many of these questions are resolved through the use of trusts, another important part of a complete estate plan. There are as many different types of trusts as there are situations addressed by trusts. They can be used to minimize tax liability, control how assets are passed from one generation to the next and protect the family from creditor claims.

How a trust should be structured, whether it is revocable, meaning it can be easily changed, or irrevocable, meaning it is harder to change, is best evaluated by an experienced estate planning attorney. No matter how complicated your situation is, they will have seen the situation before and are prepared to help.

A memorandum of disposition of personal property gives heirs insight into your wishes, by outlining what you want to happen to your personal effects. Let’s say your will leaves all of your assets to be divided equally between your children. However, you own a classic car and have a beloved nephew who loves the car as much as you do. By creating a memorandum of disposition, you can make sure your nephew gets the car, taking it out of the general provisions of the will. Be mindful of state law, however.

Note that some states do not allow the use of a memorandum of disposition, let alone permit such “titled” assets to be transferred by such an informal memorandum. Consequently, you must clarify how this situation will be handled in your state of residence with your estate planning attorney.

You will also need a Power of Attorney, giving another person the right to act on your behalf if you should become incapacitated. This is often a spouse, but it can also be another trusted individual with sound judgment who is good with handling responsibilities. Make sure to name a back-up person, just in case your primary POA cannot or will not serve.

A Medical Power of Attorney gives a named individual the ability to act on your behalf regarding medical decisions if you are incapacitated. Make sure to have a back-up, just to be sure. Failing to name a back- up for either POA will leave your family in a position where they cannot act on your behalf and may have to go to court to obtain a court-appointed guardianship in order to care for you. This is an expensive, time-consuming and stressful process, making a bad situation worse.

A Living Will is a declaration of your preference for end-of-life care. What steps do you want to be taken, or not taken, if you are medically determined to have an injury or illness from which you will not recover? This is the document used to state your wishes about a ventilator, the use of a feeding tube, etc. This is a hard thing to contemplate, but stating your wishes will be better than family members arguing about what you “would have wanted.”

Reference: Vail Daily (Feb. 15, 2022) “Essential components of an estate plan”

Can You Set Up a Trust After Death?

Can You Set Up a Trust After Death?

If you want the power of a trust without the work of maintaining it, a testamentary trust may be the right solution for your estate plan. Estate planning attorneys rely on many trusts, but two categories are most common: inter vivos trusts, trusts set up during your lifetime to offer the most flexibility, and testamentary trusts, as described in the article “Trusts can be created after death” from The News-Enterprise.

For an inter vivos trust, the grantor (the person making the trust) places property into the trust. These assets are thereby removed from the probate estate and pass directly to beneficiaries. Placing property into the trust requires having assets retitled and some trusts pay taxes. Not everyone wants to do the work. However, it is not onerous unless the estate is large, in which case an estate planning attorney can manage the details.

The testamentary trust is quite simple. The terms and directions for the trust are the same as in inter vivos trust but are inside the last will and testament. There is no separate trust document. The trust is located within the will.

The costs of creating a testamentary trust are lower, since the trust does not exist until the person dies. Your executor is responsible for transferring assets into the trust. Many wills contain “trigger” trusts, which only become effective if pre-determined circumstances of the beneficiary occur to trigger the trust. If a beneficiary becomes disabled, for instance, the provisions become active.

There are some disadvantages to be aware of, which your estate planning attorney can explain if they pertain to your situation.

Testamentary trusts must by their nature go through probate before they are created. People use trusts to protect their privacy. However, a testamentary trust becomes part of the public record as part of the probate estate. With a testamentary trust, trust documents are private during your life and after you have died.

If dependents require funds from the trust because they are disabled or dependent, they must wait until the grantor dies and probate is completed, since the trust does not exist until after probate. As most people know, probate does not always occur in a timely manner.

Other issues: some life insurance companies may not permit a testamentary trust to be a beneficiary. The trust may only be funded with assets left after creditors have been paid. If there is a home to be sold, assets may not be available for a year or more.

Testamentary trusts do not shield assets during your lifetime, another key benefit for using a trust.

Testamentary trusts offer certain means of controlling distribution of assets after death, but should be considered with all factors in mind, benefits and drawbacks. In estate planning, as in life, it is always best to prepare for the unexpected.

Reference: The News-Enterprise (Feb. 8, 2022) “Trusts can be created after death”

How Do You Pass Down a Vacation Home?

How Do You Pass Down a Vacation Home?

If your family enjoys a treasured vacation home, have you planned for what will happen to the property when you die? There are many different ways to keep a vacation home in the family. However, they all require planning to avoid stressful and expensive issues, says a recent article “Your Vacation Home Needs and Estate Plan!” from Kiplinger.

First, establish how your spouse and family members feel about the property. Do they all want to keep it in the family, or have they been attending family gatherings only to please you? Be realistic about whether the next generation can afford the upkeep, since vacation homes need the same care and maintenance as primary residences. If all agree to keep the home and are committed to doing so, consider these three ways to make it happen.

Leave the vacation home to children outright, pre or post-mortem. The simplest way to transfer any property is transferring via a deed. This can lead to some complications down the road. If all children own the property equally, they all have equal weight in making decisions about the use and management of the property. Do your children usually agree on things, and do they have the ability to work well together? Do their spouses get along? Sometimes the simplest solution at the start becomes complicated as time goes on.

If the property is transferred by deed, the children could have a Use and Maintenance Agreement created to set terms and rules for the home’s use. If everyone agrees, this could work. When the children have their own individual interest in the property, they also have the right to leave their share to their own children—they could even give away or sell their shares while they are living. If one child is enmeshed in an ugly divorce, the ex-spouse could end up owning a share of the house.

Create a Limited Liability Company, or LLC. This is a more formalized agreement used to exert more control over the property. An LLC operating agreement contains detailed rules on the use and management of the vacation home. The owner of the property puts the home in the LLC, then can give away interests in the LLC all at once or over a period of years. Your estate planning attorney may advise using the annual exclusion amount, currently at $16,000 per recipient, to make this an estate tax benefit as well.

Consider who you want to have shares in the home. Depending on the laws of your state, the LLC can be used to restrict ownership by bloodline, that is, letting only descendants be eligible for ownership. This could help keep ex-spouses or non-family members from ownership shares.

An LLC is a good option, if the home may be used as a rental property. Correctly created, the LLC can limit liability. Profits can be used to offset expenses, which would likely help maintain the property over many more years than if the children solely funded it.

What about a trust? The house can be placed into an Irrevocable Trust, with the children as beneficiaries. The terms of the trust would govern the management and use of the home. An irrevocable trust would be helpful in shielding the family from any creditor liens.

A Revocable Trust can be used to give the property to family members at the time of your death. A sub-trust, a section of the trust, is used for specific terms of how the property is to be managed, rules about when to sell the property and who is permitted to make the decision to sell it.

A Qualified Personal Residence Trust allows parents to gift the vacation home at a reduced value, while allowing them to use the property for a set term of years. When the term ends, the vacation home is either left outright to the children or it is held in trust for the next generation.

Reference: Kiplinger (Feb. 1, 2022) “Your Vacation Home Needs and Estate Plan!”

What Kind of Trust Is Right for You?

What Kind of Trust Is Right for You?

Everyone wins when estate planning attorneys, financial advisors and accounting professionals work together on a comprehensive estate plan. Each of these professionals can provide their insights when helping you make decisions in their area. Guiding you to the best possible options tends to happen when everyone is on the same page, says a recent article “Choosing Between Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts” from U.S. News & World Report.

What is a trust and what do trusts accomplish? Trusts are not just for the wealthy. Many families use trusts to serve different goals, from controlling distributions of assets over generations to protecting family wealth from estate and inheritance taxes.

There are two basic kinds of trust. There are also many specialized trusts in each of the two categories: the revocable trust and the irrevocable trust. The first can be revoked or changed by the trust’s creator, known as the “grantor.” The second is difficult and in some instances and impossible to change, without the complete consent of the trust’s beneficiaries.

There are pros and cons for each type of trust.

Let’s start with the revocable trust, which is also referred to as a living trust. The grantor can make changes to the trust at any time, from removing assets or beneficiaries to shutting down the trust entirely. When the grantor dies, the trust becomes irrevocable. Revocable trusts are often used to pass assets to adult children, with a trustee named to manage the trust’s assets until the trust documents direct the trustee to distribute assets. Some people use a revocable trust to prevent their children from accessing wealth too early in their lives, or to protect assets from spendthrift children with creditor problems.

Irrevocable trusts are just as they sound: they can’t be amended once established. The terms of the trust cannot be changed, and the grantor gives up any control or legal right to the assets, which are owned by the trust.

Giving up control comes with the benefit that assets placed in the trust are no longer part of the grantor’s estate and are not subject to estate taxes. Creditors, including nursing homes and Medicaid, are also prevented from accessing assets in an irrevocable trust.

Irrevocable trusts were once used by people in high-risk professions to protect their assets from lawsuits. Irrevocable trusts are used to divest assets from estates, so people can become eligible for Medicaid or veteran benefits.

The revocable trust protects the grantor’s wishes, if the grantor becomes incapacitated. It also avoids probate, since the trust becomes irrevocable upon death and assets are outside of the probated estate. The revocable trust may include qualified assets, like IRAs, 401(k)s and 403(b)s.

However, there are drawbacks. The revocable trust does not provide tax benefits or creditor protection while the grantor is living.

Your estate planning attorney will know which type of trust is best for your situation, and working with your financial advisor and accountant, will be able to create the plan that minimizes taxes and maximizes wealth transfers for your heirs.

Reference: U.S. News & World Report (Aug. 26, 2021) “Choosing Between Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts”