A Will is a legal document that directs how your assets will be distributed at your death and designates someone to oversee that process. This individual must be authorized by the court to access your assets, pay your last debts and distribute your remaining property to your beneficiaries.

Laws and personal circumstances can change rapidly. To stay effective and current, your estate plan should be regularly reviewed and refined as needed.

A “Living” Trust is a Will-substitute created and used while you are alive to provide for you during your lifetime and then your loved ones upon your death. Trusts, among other things, will avoid probateProbate can refer to the process of settling the estate of a deceased person. Read More court, allow easy access to accounts, and be established to protect inheritances, minimize taxes, and save on long-term care costs. A Trust has no practical benefit if there are no assets titled in its name or it is not listed as a beneficiary of accounts such as 401(k)s or life insurance.

A Trust may be ineffective if there are no assets titled in its name or it is not listed as a beneficiary of accounts such as 401(k)s or life insurance.

Changes in the law, the emergence of new legal tools for better estate planning, changes in your personal and family’s lives, or even simply a lack of understanding are just a few of the reasons why you might lose “trust” in your Trust.

Laws and personal circumstances can change quickly. To stay effective, your estate plan should be regularly reviewed and updated as needed.

Not having an estate plan means that the state will make one for you. There are laws that will determine your executor and your beneficiaries if you fail to make a plan.

Having no plan in place that legally names someone as a medical agent for you will result in the courts making that decision instead.

If written correctly, a Trust can protect an inheritance from a beneficiary’s Divorce, Debts (creditors), Disputes (lawsuits), Disability (state benefits) and Destructive Spending.

Tax laws allow everyone to exclude some of their possessions from tax at death. How much is excluded often depends upon the type of estate plan you have.