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A typical Estate Plan through my office includes:
- A Living Trust – to avoid probate and direct who gets what part of your estate.
- A Pour Over Will – to catch anything that falls outside the trust.
- Advance Health Care Directive – who makes decisions for you, what the doctors can do.
- Power of Attorney for Asset Management – who pays the bills if you’re hurt.
- Transfer of one deed included – extra fees apply for more than one property.
Everyone should have an estate plan. If you have a relatively small estate, the plan can be very simple, just a straight forward will. If you have a large estate with multiple houses and businesses, the estate plan could be very complicated. Most people, of course, fall somewhere in between.
An estate plan answers the questions: Who gets my stuff when I die? Who does not get anything? Who will take care of my minor children if something happens to me? Who can make medical decisions for me if I’m incapacitated? Are they authorized to “pull the plug”? Who will pay the bills for me if I’m incapacitated? I can help you answer these questions and more with a comprehensive Estate Plan that is unique to your particular family situation.
Two important issues in estate planning are: Probate, and Estate Taxes.
Probate – Most people, under the current laws, establish a living trust in order to avoid probate. Probate can be very slow. Your heirs could potentially be waiting years for the property to be distributed among them. Probate is also very expensive. It could end up costing you tens of thousands of dollars which could have gone to your heirs. Also, probate records are public. Anybody can look at them. A living trust is a private document and no one has the right to see it.
Estate Taxes – Everyone has an estate tax exemption. Currently, this is set at $2 million. It changes every year, and who knows what Congress will have it set at in the year you die? If you have a large estate, we can use sophisticated strategies to minimize your estate tax bill. If you have a smaller estate, we can still put in some simple provisions to allow your surviving spouse to elect certain provisions to minimize or eliminate any tax liability.
An estate plan is unique for every family who writes one. There are several options available. I can go through all the options with you and together we can develop the best plan. The following are some of the options available.
Do Nothing – Your estate will pass “intestate”. This is a legal term meaning your estate will go through probate, and the State decides where your assets go. There’s also no plan for minor children or what happens to you if you are incapacitated.
Simple Will – A will is a good option for people with small estates and relatively simple goals in mind. A will is also a less expensive estate plan. If you have a will, your estate will go through probate, but you can be sure it will go to whom you wish, and in the manner you wish.
Living Trust – A Living Trust is a private document which creates a separate entity to hold the assets of your estate. Since these assets are in the Trust, they are distributed on your death in accordance with the provisions of the Trust. Usually, all the assets in the Trust bypass Probate. But while you are alive, you’re the Trustee of the Trust, so you maintain control of the assets. You can also change the Trust at any time while you are still alive.
Call for a free consultation – 925.200.3936
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