Making mistakes when creating a trust can be a major problem. You count on your trust to provide you with important protections and to ensure that you are able to care for your loved ones in appropriate ways. Unfortunately, mistakes with trusts often are not identified until it is too late to correct them, which means that you lose the protections that the trust was supposed to provide you with. 
The best way to avoid mistakes when creating trusts is to work with an experienced attorney who can help you to do the trust creation process properly. Mark S. Eghrari & Associates PLLC has extensive experience with trust creation and can guide you through the entire process, including selecting the type of trust that makes the most sense to meet your needs. Give us a call to find out more about the common errors people make during the trust creation process and to get help creating a trust that will give you the legal benefits that you are counting on.
Top 4 Mistakes When Creating a Trust
Trust creation can be a versatile estate planning tool, but a trust is not right for everyone. There are also many different kinds of trusts that exist, each of which serve different purposes. A trust creation lawyer can work with you to evaluate your situation, help determine if you need a trust, and go through the formal trust creation process. Mark S. Eghrari & Associates PLLC can also assist you in avoiding these four common mistakes that many people make when creating a trust including:
- Making the wrong kind of trust. Living trusts, irrevocable trusts, domestic asset protection trusts, spendthrift trusts, special needs trusts…. the list of different trust types could go on and on. Different kinds of trusts are used to accomplish different goals. For example, a living trust is a good solution for probate avoidance and is useful as part of an incapacity plan, but will not be a good tool to use in a Medicaid plan. An irrevocable trust, on the other hand, requires giving up a lot of control over assets but can be beneficial in shielding your wealth from creditors and in keeping assets safe if you need costly nursing home care.
- Not complying with requirements for trust creation. You must create a trust document in accordance with New York law and follow all steps to ensure that the trust is legally valid. If you do not follow the protocol for creating a trust, you may believe you have a trust that is protecting your heirs and assets, only for the errors to be discovered after you are sick or after you have passed away. You cannot go back and fix the issues with the trust once you are incapacitated or deceased and the trust is not working the way it should.
- Choosing the wrong trustee. A trustee has a fiduciary duty to manage trust assets in an appropriate manner in the best interests of the beneficiaries. However, you need to make certain you select someone who is up to the task of managing the trust properly. You do not want your beneficiaries to be forced to go to court (nor do you want to have to go to court) as a result of a breach of fiduciary duty.
- Failing to fund the trust. Creating a trust is just the first step. You also need to transfer over ownership of the assets that you want the trust to protect. Without formally going through this process of transferring assets, the trust is not going to provide the protection and security it was created to offer to you and your heirs.
These are just some of the many problems that could render your trust invalid or result in your trust not providing expected protections. You want to avoid these and other errors and can do so by working with a trusted legal team who knows the trust creation process inside and out.
Getting Help from A Long Island Trusts Lawyer
Mark S. Eghrari & Associates PLLC has extensive experience providing assistance with the trust creation process. Our legal team has assisted many clients in Long Island and surrounding areas in creating a trust that keeps their assets safe and that provides the necessary protection for themselves and the people they love.
To learn more about creating a trust and about how a trust can fit in with your comprehensive estate plan, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at (631) 265-0599 or contact us online to talk with a Long Island trusts lawyer who can help you.
Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney
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