Long Island Elder Law & Estate Planning

If you are thinking about creating living trusts, you should be aware that a living trust has many advantages. One of the biggest benefits associated with this type of trust is that the assets which are held within a living trust do not have to pass though the probate process. This is a major benefit to those who stand to inherit and it could benefit the trust creator as well. living trusts

Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC can provide insight into the benefits of creating a living trust and can help you to determine if living trusts are the right legal tools for you to use to protect your assets and your heirs or beneficiaries.

You should give us a call to get personalized advice about living trusts and to ensure that you get the help you need to make a legally valid trust document so you and your heirs or beneficiaries will get the expected benefits from trust creation.

Creating Living Trusts Makes Skipping Probate Possible

One of the big benefits for both the trust creator and for heirs or beneficiaries is that assets held within the trust do not have to pass through the probate process, which is the process typically used to transfer wealth after someone has passed away.

The probate process can take a long time to be completed, with Investopedia estimating that the process takes around a year. This can be very stressful for heirs or beneficiaries to wait for their inheritance to be received and it can sometimes result in assets being reduced in value because the executor of an estate who is in charge of managing the assets may not be as competent or as knowledgeable as the new owners would be.

The trust creator benefits from having wealth transferred more quickly through the trust administration process because there is no need to worry about whether an executor will manage the wealth properly or about the value of an inheritance being eroded over time. Heirs or beneficiaries also benefit from getting their inheritance in a timely manner without the stress of court.

A trust creator also benefits because the costs associated with transferring assets through the probate process can be substantial. Investopedia estimates the costs at around three percent to seven percent of the value of the estate. You do not want your hard-earned money to be lost because expensive probate costs have to be paid. When you create a living trust and assets can pass outside probate, more wealth can pass on to loved ones without probate costs.

However, you should be aware that the creation of a living trust will not prevent trust assets from being subject to estate tax so if this is a concern for you, then you should work with trust lawyers to explore other alternatives.

Living trusts also allow assets to pass more privately since the trust administration process takes place without court involvement unless there is a problem — which means that the transfer of wealth doesn’t have to become court record as it does during probate. If you create a trust, you protect your family’s privacy and both you and your heirs or beneficiaries benefit as a result.

Getting Help from Living Trust Lawyers

Living trusts are a powerful legal tool but you need to make sure that this type of trust is the right one for you and — if so — you need to ensure that you have made a valid trust that will provide you, your heirs or beneficiaries, and other loved ones in your life with all of the expected benefits that you anticipate a trust will provide.

To find out more about the benefits of living trusts and to get help creating a trust that will protect your assets and your family, you should reach out to Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC . You can join us for a free seminar to get more details about how our firm helps with trust creation and to learn why creating a trust could be a good approach to your estate planning process. You can also give us a call at (631) 265-0599 or contact us online  to get personalized advice.

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About Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney

Mark S. Eghrari is an attorney in private practice in Smithtown, New York. He has been in practice since 1988. Mark S. Eghrari provides extensive estate and tax planning services to individuals and businesses. Mr. Eghrari’s primary focus is helping clients avoid probate, minimize or eliminate Federal and State Estate taxes and protect their assets from the high cost of nursing care, if they become ill.