As attorneys working with clients in completing their personal and customized estate planning, we have come to learn that Idaho living trust are a great tool to consider. Our team of Idaho estate planning attorneys have used living trusts as a way of helping clients to protect their assets and to make meaningful decisions about how distributions of their properties will be made to their family and loved ones for several generations after they pass away.
Our Idaho estate planning team includes lawyers, paralegals, and legal assistants all who have years of experience in working with clients to meet their specific and unique estate planning needs. Our team consists of partners Randy Budge and Lane Erickson and attorneys Nate Palmer and Dave Bagley. We take pride in the fact that those on our team are widely recognized as experts in Idaho estate planning. Both client reviews and rankings through the best-known legal rating services all show that our team is both recognized and respected by clients, other attorneys, and judges.
If you are considering completing your own Idaho estate planning you should think about the use of a living trust as an option. To help you better understand how a living trust can help you here are four things you should know.
It is not Expensive to Have a Living TrustThe first thing that you should understand is that a living trust is not expensive to get. While it is true that a well-drafted living trust is going to cost more to complete than a simple last will and testament, the savings that a living trust may provide for you and your family over the long term could make up for this difference.
When done correctly all the assets that are transferred into the living trust are no longer subject to the requirement of probate after you pass away. If you are able to transfer a majority of your assets into the living trust you may actually be able to avoid most of the costly steps of probate completely. The real key is having expert guidance in both creating and funding your living trust. This is where our team of Idaho estate planning lawyers can help you.
A Living Trust is not Just for Wealthy PeopleThe second thing that you should understand is that having a living trust is not only for the wealthy. While it is true that many wealthy people take advantage of the use of living trusts, you do not have to be wealthy to benefit from using a living trust as part of your estate planning. The benefits of using a revocable living trust in an estate plan are more widely known and understood.
Essentially, avoiding the costs of probate after you die, and eliminating the need for conservatorships over your property while you are alive, provides a huge financial advantage to even smaller estates. Moreover, using a living trust allows you to maintain control over the when and how distributions of your property are made after you die. Alternatively, if you do not have a living trust, you are assets will be distributed through the probate process and you will have no control over the timing of those distributions.
A Living Trust is a lot of WorkA third misconception about trusts is that they are a lot of work. Many times individuals think that the time and effort it takes to set up a trust is just simply too much work. The reality is that creating a trust and funding the trust by transferring assets into it takes about the same amount of work as completing a basic estate plan which would consist of a last will and testament, a durable power of attorney for property, and a living will and power of attorney for health care.
There is a little more work involved in that once the document is completed and signed assets do need to be transferred into it. However, this process is relatively easy and simple as well. By having guidance through a qualified Idaho estate planning attorney, the job of creating and funding a living trust is actually pretty simple.
A Living Trust Does not Require You to Give Up Control Over Your AssetsPerhaps the biggest misunderstanding about how trusts work is that many people think that once a trust is created the individual loses control over the assets that are placed in the trust. With a basic revocable living trust this is simply not true. The individual who creates the trust is called the trustor or grantor. The individual who controls and operates the trust is called the trustee. The individual who receives the benefit of the property, money, or assets that are in a trust is called the beneficiary.
In Idaho an individual can be all three of these at the same time. What this means is the individual retains complete control over the assets and also receives the benefits of having them protected in a living trust. Additionally, as was mentioned above. The person who creates the trust also maintains control over the assets, property, and money Even after they die. The person who creates the trust can be very specific about how and when distributions of all those items are made. So what happens, by having a living trust, you actually have more control over the assets then you would have if you simply had a last will and testament alone.
Enlist an Idaho Estate Planning and Probate Attorney to Help YouOur experienced Estate Planning team of attorneys can help you and your family with your Idaho estate plan or with a probate needs. Whether you are seeking your own customized Estate Plan or are in need of a Probate for a loved one who has passed, we are available to discuss your options and answer your questions at an initial consultation. Call us toll free at 877.232.6101 or 208.232.6101 for a consultation with the Racine Olson team. You can also email us directly at racine@racinelaw.net. We will answer your questions and will help you solve your Idaho Estate Planning and Probate problems.