Probate occurs when you have a will, but not a trust.
 
Probate is the legal process which must take place when a person dies and the items in their estate are valued above a certain amount [varies by state - NJ, MD, Pa and VA - $50,000 - DE, $30,000] AND/OR dies owning real estate of any value.



​Items that pass to someone via a designation of beneficiary [life insurance, IRA, etc] are not included in the estate.
Probate is a long process that's extremely complex and very expensive.

Because of that most people will want to avoid probate by planning ahead. A proper estate plan will prevent probate costs and hassles.

A traditional Will alone will NOT avoid probate, however a properly drafted Trust can.

Estate planning is not just for rich people. As stated above if you die with real estate valued at only $10,000 it will be required.

Because many types of assets cannot pass via beneficiary a proper estate plan will include a Trust.
​
A Trust is a legal instrument and agreement that will hold the assets and pass them to the beneficiary at your death.
You can have complete use of any real estate owned by a Trust so don't worry about your home or real estate.

There are different types of Trusts used for estate planning so be sure to consult an attorney to who also an expert with Long Term Care Planning, including Medicaid planning.

Traditional estate plans can disqualify someone from receiving Medical Assistance for their cost of long term care.

Proper planning has many layers and can be complex even with a modest net worth.

Contact us today for expert help with all of your planning needs
855.471.6771  [email protected]

Do middle class people use trusts?

We have a lot of clients who are surprised when we recommend using a trust to protect their assets.

Our clients will say, "a Trust? but I'm not wealthy.

Trusts are not just for wealthy people, they're for middle class American's who wish to ensure that their hard earned savings actually goes to their family when they pass away.

Our clients will also say, I have a Will, isn't that just as good?

The short answer is no, it's not.








Let's start with;
What Is a Trust ?
The definition of a trust is “a special type of legal entity that holds property for the benefit of another person or person(s).” Trusts offer many important advantages for families who wish to manage their assets wisely.

Depending on the type of trust you establish, your trust can accomplish things such as:

• Protecting your house and savings from the catastrophic expenses of long term care costs, nursing home care and Medicaid;
• Protecting your house and savings from creditors and lawsuits;
• Distributing assets to heirs while minimizing / eliminating the hassles and expenses of probate;
• Providing charitable gifts;
• Ensuring the financial well-being of family members with special needs;
• Reducing / eliminating estate taxes.
• Protecting assets from a child's divorce

 
Trusts are also essential for families who want to ensure their children and grandchildren under the age of 18 will be beneficiaries of their estate, but also want to be able to set specific rules that control how and when the assets will be distributed and used.

Let's go back to why a Will is not as good as a Trust.

A Will is a just list of suggestions as to how you would like to have your assets distributed at your passing.
However, a Will can't guarantee that those assets will be available at your passing.

Example: If you state that you would like to have your children receive your house at your passing but you had to sell your home to pay for the high cost of a nursing home, the house won't be there to give to your children, they will receive nothing.

However, if you were to have transferred your home to a Trust the home would be there for your children.  You would not have to sell it to pay for a nursing home, it is untouchable by the nursing home, they can't put a lien on it.

The same goes for anything else transferred to the trust [cash, investment accounts, etc.]

A properly drafted Trust agreement will accomplish all of this.

The great thing is that you get to choose who your beneficiaries are, what they will receive and how they will receive it. You have complete control over that [just like  a Will but with complete protection].

Contact us today to learn more about how  trust can benefit you and your family.
855.471.6771    [email protected]

download our flow chart - How A Trust Works

73% of Americans do not have an up-to-date Will

9% of Americans have an out-of-date will and 63% do not have a Will at all.
​                                                              
NEW YORK, NY. – June 21, 2016 – A recent Google Consumer Survey by a company that produces online legal documents suggests that previous surveys may have under-reported the number of Americans without a Will, by not including those who have a Will that is out-of-date. The survey reported that 63% of Americans do not have a Will, showing no real change from 2014. However, a statistic that was not published before now                                                                                       reveals that 9% of Americans have a Will that is out-of-date.

“In essence, although they technically had a Will, it was worthless.”

​This means that 72% of Americans do not have an up-to-date Last Will and Testament.                                                                                                                                                               
“We really wanted to explore this group after anecdotally hearing from people who had a Will, but had it written before they got married or had children,” explained the CEO of this company. 

Particularly, seniors (aged 65+) are the most likely age group to have a Will that is out-of-date (15%). Of the 65% of seniors who said that they have a Will, almost one in four have Wills which are out-of-date.

The survey showed a positive relationship between age and the probability of having a Will:
• 18-24: 85% do not have a Will, 10% have an out-of-date Will, and 5% have an up-to-date Will.
• 23-35: 80% do not have a Will, 6% have an out-of-date Will, and 14% have an up-to-date Will.
• 35-44: 67% do not have a Will, 8% have an out-of-date Will, and 25% have an up-to-date Will.
• 45-54: 53% do not have a Will, 11% have an out-of-date Will, and 36% have an up-to-date Will.
• 55-64: 52% do not have a Will, 8% have an out-of-date Will, and 40% have an up-to-date Will.
• 65+: 35% do not have a Will, 15% have an out-of-date Will, and 50% have an up-to-date Will.

Even when discounting younger adults, 53.5% of Americans aged 35 and older responded to not having a Will; 9.5% responded to having a Will that is out-of-date, leaving only 37% with a Will that reflects their current financial and personal situation.

The income group least likely to have up-to-date Wills was in the $100,000+ annual income range.
The income group most likely to have up-to-date Wills was in the annual income range of $25,000-$99,999.
There were no significant differences when comparing across gender, region, or urban density.

Methodology
The survey was conducted within the United States by Google Consumer Surveys, June 2016, among 2,012 adults aged 18 and older, and has a root square mean error of 1.4%.
Results are weighted by age, gender, and region.

Questions about wills, estate planning or long term care planning?   contact us