Estate Planning
Pass on your legacy your way.
We help with you your Wills, Trusts, Deeds, Financial Power of Attorney, Healthcare Directive.
We also go the extra mile to “fund” your trust.
Choose our “Do it Yourself” or our “End to End Solution,” we stand by you so you have the estate plan you want.
Will
A Will, sometimes called a “last will and testament,” states your last wishes. You do not have to move property into your will. It distributes your assets outside your trust or other probate avoidance arrangements. If the total value of assets being distributed by your will is higher than a certain amount ($166,250 in 2022), the court supervises the distribution. This is called probate and usually takes about one year, sometimes more, and is costly. So it is advisable to use your will as a backup with minimal assets being distributed by your will.
A will is also used to name guardians for your minor children.
Trust
A trust holds property in trust for beneficiaries. You have to fund (move property into) a trust. Distribution of property with a valid trust does not require court supervision (so there will be no probate).
Trust can be revocable or irrevocable. Revocable Trusts, also called Grantor Trusts or Living Trusts are used to avoid probate. These trusts, however, do not protect from estate taxes. Currently (2022) estates larger than $12.06 million for a single person and larger than $24.12 million are subject to estate tax.
Irrevocable Trusts move the estate from the control of the settlor (person creating the trust) to that of the trust. So estate in irrevocable trusts are not subject to estate tax. Irrevocable Trusts may also be created for Special Needs, Charitable and purposes. Call us to discuss your irrevocable trust needs.
Durable Power of Attorney for Financial Management
This document authorizes an agent to make certain financial decisions on your behalf. This is effective while you are alive, and it can be used even when you become incapacitated. A Durable Power of Attorney for Financial Management is a useful part of your estate plan, for instance, if you become incapacitated and you have assets that are not yet moved to the Trust, your agent can move the asset to your Trust.
Advance Healthcare Directive
Funding of Trust
A trust can only distribute assets that is under the name of the trust. Renaming assets in the name of a trust is called funding. Your assets could be subject to probate or there could be dispute about your intent if you do not fund your trust. We have a simple and foolproof process for funding your trust.
This is a critical and difficult part of estate planning that is overlooked by most other firms. We make it easy for you.
Quitclaim Deed/Trust Transfer Deeds
We prepare Quitclaim Deeds which transfers your real property from you as an individual to you as trustee of your trust. This transfer puts your property in the trust.
We also provide Quitclaim Deeds for gifting purposes. Just ask us.