Long Island Elder Law & Estate Planning

A Smithtown revocable trust could be utilized as part of your estate plan and could also help you to be prepared for incapacity. It is important that you consider whether a revocable living trust is a useful tool that you should make use of in order to protect your family and your wealth. Smithtown revocable trust

Every persons situation is different, so you will need to make smart choices about whether creating a revocable living trust is the best course of action for your situation or whether other legal tools would help you to better accomplish your aims. Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC  can work closely with you to identify your goals for making your estate plan and incapacity plan and will help you to decide what tools are best to achieve the objectives that you have.

You should give us a call to find out about whether creating a Smithtown revocable trust is the right tool for you. You can also read on to learn about some of the pros and cons of a Smithtown revocable trust.

Pros and Cons of a Smithtown Revocable Trust

There are many different advantages associated with the creation of a Smithtown revocable trust. For example, one big advantage is that assets held within the trust will be able to pass through the trust administration process instead of through the probate process.

Being able to pass assets through the trust administration process is a major benefit because the trust administration process is a much faster and easier process than the probate process. Your heirs or beneficiaries won’t have to worry about going to court when coping with the death of a loved one. The trust administration process is also much more private than the probate process, as probate proceedings become court record and records can be open to the public while the trust administration process takes place outside of court. And, it is more cost-effective to transfer assets through the trust administration process too.

Another big advantage of creating a Smithtown revocable trust is that the trust will help to provide some protection for your assets in case of incapacity. If you have funded the trust and named a backup trustee to take charge of the trust assets when you no longer can manage them, this backup trustee can ensure that your wealth is kept safe and secure. You will not have to worry about your money or property being mismanaged by a guardian the court chooses for you or not managed at all while there is a process underway for the court to appoint a guardian.

A revocable living trust also gives you the ability to continue controlling your trust assets as you take advantage of these other benefits.  In comparison, an irrevocable trust requires you to give up a substantial amount of control because you cannot just change or alter the trust at all.

However, there are also a few downsides or limitations to a revocable living trust. If you create a revocable living trust, because you maintain control over it, the assets held within the trust will still count as assets you own for purposes of determining if you are able to qualify for means-tested Medicaid coverage. Furthermore, while the assets transfer outside of the probate process, the money and property owned by the revocable living trust can sill be considered a part of your taxable estate. This means if your estate is large enough to trigger federal or state estate tax, making a revocable living trust will not help you to reduce or avoid the tax bill.

Getting Help from a Smithtown Trust Attorney

A Smithtown trust attorney at Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC  will help you to define your goals, assess the legal tools that you might be able to use to achieve them, and move forward with the creation of a comprehensive estate plan. Depending upon your situation, this could include creating a revocable living trust or it could include making effective use of other legal tools.

To find out more about how our firm can help you with creating a trust or otherwise making your plans for protecting assets, taking care of your family, and securing your legacy, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at (631) 265-0599 or contact us online today.

 

Latest posts by Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney (see all)

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.