Category Archives: Living Trusts
Avoiding the Pitfalls of Joint Tenancy Through a Living Trust
There are serious problems that you could experience when you add someone to your real estate or bank account as a joint tenant. In summary: (1) once you add someone onto your property, you have created a joint owner of the property with an immediate ownership interest in the property. By giving someone immediate… Read More »
Estate Planning for Your Pet
You may have heard of a case a couple of years ago in which a very wealthy lady left several million dollars for the care of her pet. While some think such a thing is absurd, it is a fact that some people are very fond of their dogs, cats, horses or other pets…. Read More »
Myths Concerning The Living Trust
Based on my conversations with various individuals, it appears that there are some common misconceptions about what a revocable living trust can and can not do. I’d like to take a moment to explore three of the most common myths that give rise to these misconceptions. Myth 1: “If I put all my assets… Read More »
Legal Check-Up
Your estate plan should be reviewed periodically to make sure that it is “evergreen” — that it accurately reflects your life circumstances and preferences. Here are a few questions you can answer to complete your estate planning check-up: Do you have a will or trust? Do you need to make changes to your will… Read More »
Pay Now or Pay Later
You may have heard and read about the benefits of a living trust as an estate planning tool. You may think it is the right thing to do — but you’re stopped cold by the price tag. Let’s look at the range of offers. The lowest price I’ve seen for a living trust is… Read More »
Breathing Life into the Living Trust
Many people having good intentions establish a living trust to operate during their lifetime in case of disability and to distribute their assets without probate when they pass away. However, some people mistakenly assume that creating a trust is all that needs to be done. Unless you “breathe life” into a trust however, the… Read More »
Handling Incapacity Through a Living Trust
One way you can make provision for the handling of your affairs should you become incapacitated is through a living trust. People usually think of the living trust only in connection with death and the passing of property to a person’s heirs without probate. However, a well-written living trust should also provide important provisions… Read More »
Avoiding Probate Through a Living Trust
Estate planning may be defined as the continual process of arranging your personal and financial affairs in order to maximize your enjoyment and your heirs’ enjoyment of your assets. Though estate planning is a broad subject with many benefits, in this article I will discuss only one of the primary benefits of estate planning…. Read More »