When you are engaged in your estate planning efforts, you should understand the benefits that you could gain if you were to use a revocable living trust as your primary asset transfer vehicle.
With a revocable living trust, you do not surrender control of the resources that you convey into it, because you can initially act as the trustee and the beneficiary. Plus, since you can revoke the trust, you could essentially “call the whole thing off” and take back direct personal possession of the assets. The trust would no longer exist if you choose to revoke it.
You ultimately want someone to distribute assets to your heirs after you pass away, so you name a successor trustee to take over the role after your passing. It would also be possible to empower this person or entity to administer the trust in the event of your incapacitation.
In the trust declaration you name secondary beneficiaries to succeed you, and after your passing, the beneficiaries will receive distributions in accordance with your wishes. These distributions would not be subject to probate, which can be a time-consuming and expensive process.
Changing a Living Trust
Another benefit that you gain when you create a living trust is the ability to change the terms of the trust. You can add or subtract beneficiaries, change the successor trustee, convey additional property into the trust, or remove property from the trust.
To change the living trust, you could add an amendment to the trust, but you have to make sure that the amendment is very clear with regard to your intentions. Another possibility would be a restatement of the trust. The original trust would still exist, but the terms of the trust would be completely restated.
Learn More About Living Trusts
We have prepared a comprehensive, in-depth report that you may want to access if you would like to learn more about revocable living trusts. This report will answer all of your questions, and it is being offered to our readers free of charge at the present time.
To obtain access to your copy of the report, visit this page and follow the simple instructions: Free Report on Revocable Living Trusts.
Take Direct Action
If you would like to take things a step further and speak with an attorney about the possible creation of a living trust, our firm would be glad to assist you. We offer free consultations, and you can send us a message through our contact page to schedule an appointment: Long Island NY Estate Planning Attorneys.
More Content at Forbes.com
We are regular contributors to the Forbes.com website. If you would like to obtain additional information about estate planning and elder law topics, visit our page on their site: Forbes Contributor Mark Eghrari.
Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney
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