The trust is a very useful and flexible tool for estate planning, yet it is probably the most underused estate management technique. A trust is an artificial entity, something like a corporation, created by a document or instrument.
Every family has one–or maybe more–black sheep. They’re people who march to their own drum and handing them an inheritance could be problematic.
Taking a few simple steps now can potentially help save your beneficiaries thousands in legal fees and taxes.
After a loved one passes, one of the biggest hurdles families face is passing wealth onto the next generation. Unfortunately, family dynamics can spur conflict and infighting among descendants.
Is it better to transfer the title of the home to us, or to leave it as it is given her age and go through probate?
Remember that a will goes through probate, so a husband and wife typically try to avoid it by using joint ownership or beneficiary designations. However, they’re often mistaken by believing the will still controls their estate.
A trustee is a manager of assets in a trust. The grantor creates the trust and appoints the trustee. A trustee has a ‘fiduciary duty’ to serve the grantor and not benefit personally.
My mother and father had retirement funds. My father passed and it went to my mother. My mother got remarried and she had a will when she died. My stepfather is to get what they agreed upon. She never made him the beneficiary of that retirement fund that was between my mother and father., However, when I asked to see the amount of this fund, the executor would not produce it. How can we find out the amount?
Unfortunately, due to hidden resentments, siblings still tend to end up in court suing each other and losing great chunks of their inheritance in the process all too frequently.
For most of us, considering the distribution of the property we have accumulated over our lives is a painful reminder of our mortality.
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