Should You Set Up A Revocable Living Trust?

Are you looking to start estate planning, but you're not sure about the best way to do it? If so, you'll definitely want to know more about using a revocable living trust instead of other estate planning methods.

Privacy  

A will is a document that becomes part of the public record during the probate process. This means that all of the assets that will be passed on will be known to others if they do a bit of research. This may be something that you prefer not to have happen to your heirs, and a living trust keeps things private. It will prevent others from discovering how much someone inherited, which they would rather keep quiet about. 

Guardianship Selection

One advantage of using a living trust is that you have control over guardianship of your estate if you are unable to make decisions on your own. This can include if you are hospitalized. In comparison, a will only comes into play when you pass away, which does not allow you to state who you want to make decisions while you're alive. 

Probate Avoidance

Any assets that are within a living trust will get passed onto the other people in the trust after you pass away. This means that all of your assets will bypass the probate process, which can be time-consuming and expensive. Heirs will have access to the assets immediately, and not have to go through the court system. 

In addition, avoiding probate prevents people from challenging your living trust, which is simply not possible. Part of the probate process involves validating the will, and there is an opportunity for others to make objections to your will. This will never happen with a living trust, so you won't have to worry about heirs having the trust challenged. 

Power To Amend

Creating a revocable living trust allows you to make changes to the assets that are within the trust at any time. You can also make changes to who is in the trust and who is not in the trust. This is different from an irrevocable living trust, which you cannot modify once it has been created. There is also a testamentary trust, which is created while you are alive but only funded after you pass away, which is another form of an irrevocable trust since you cannot modify it.

Reach out to an estate planning lawyer for more information about setting up a living trust. 

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