A trust is a powerful estate planning tool that protects your legacy by creating a virtual forcefield around your assets. As the Grantor, you can place assets into a trust to be held by a trustee on behalf of a beneficiary.
A proper trust will help your loved ones avoid probate and eliminate estate taxes.
Our Atlanta trust lawyers at Edwards Family Law can help you preserve your legacy by establishing a trust that works for you.
Contact us today to discuss your options.
There are four main categories of trusts that can be added to your estate plan: living trusts, testamentary trusts, revocable, and irrevocable trusts.
Here are the definitions of these trusts and how they can benefit your estate.
As the name suggests, a living trust is created while you are alive. On the other hand, a testamentary trust is set up after you have passed away according to your last will and testament.
A revocable trust is a living trust you can alter during your lifetime. Its primary purpose is bypassing probate, making asset transfer more efficient upon death.
An irrevocable trust can not be altered once created. This type of trust allows you to transfer assets out of your taxable estate, making income from the estate no longer taxable to you or the estate.
Many subcategories of trust documents may benefit your plan, such as charitable trusts, credit shelter trusts, or special needs trusts. Your plan will be specific to your needs. Our attorneys can meet with you to discuss your goals to help create a plan that works for you.
The Last Will and Testament is an essential part of any estate plan. However, it is not all-encompassing and may lack some valuable benefits.
Here’s how adding a trust to your estate plan can add value to your estate plan.
Depending on the type of trust, your assets—and the appreciation of those assets over time—will be sheltered from tax implications while you’re living and upon your death.
You may also be tax-exempt from making specific annual contributions to the trust. Our attorneys can discuss your options so that you can make a tax-savvy decision for your future.
The Last Will and Testament becomes a public record, meaning it can be seen by anyone who requests access to it. However, trusts provide added privacy protection by not disclosing your information to the public.
Depending on the type of trust you choose, you may have the flexibility to make changes during your lifetime. Things may come up, and changes may need to be made.
When that happens, our attorneys can ensure that your end-of-life decisions remain up to date to avoid legal issues or disputes later on.
Probate, or estate administration, is a legal process by which your estate will be managed and distributed according to your wishes in court. A trust allows you to bypass probate by pre-determining how your assets will be distributed.
Instead of going through the courts, the assets listed in your trust can bypass this process by allowing the trustee to distribute them directly to the beneficiaries. On the other hand, assets listed in your will must go through probate.
A trust is a complex document—one that will define the financial future of your loved ones. Serious decisions like these require serious attention from a qualified estate planning attorney. While many DIY online estate planning tools exist, all pale in comparison to the hands-on help of a trust lawyer.
We will help you map out your family’s future by:
When you’re looking for reliable estate planning, contact our Atlanta estate lawyers at Edward Family Law.
Each case is different, but we can share what clients typically struggle with when they make their initial calls to us:
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Many types of assets can be incorporated into a trust.
Here are some of the most common:
To note, some estate assets that cannot be transferred into a trust are retirement accounts, everyday vehicles, health savings accounts, or financial accounts you are actively using.
The trustee is the individual/entity that manages and safeguards the assets in the estate and is in charge of distribution.
A trustee can be virtually anyone that you decide who is over the age of 18. You may choose a family member, friend, or a partial third party like an attorney or trust company.
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