Sacramento Estate Planning Lawyer

In creating a living trust, you are also providing for the financial future of your family members, friends, beloved pets, as well as charitable organization if you so choose. With the help of a living trust lawyer, the process of transferring your property and assets to the trust will be a straightforward manner. Even after they are managed by the trust, you will retain control of that property and assets. In addition, you can specify your spouse as a co-trustee so that they too will have control of your property and assets. If you have additional concerns or needs, talk to your living trust lawyer. They can develop a customized estate plan solution that can provide you with peace of mind and a carefully preserved legacy.

The Differences Between a Living Trust and a Will

When our living trust lawyer sits down with you and learns about your concerns, circumstances, and goals you will gain a greater understanding of the differences among the choices of estate planning tools. Here is a brief overview:

• One of the primary differences between a will and a living trust is that wills are a matter of public record. A living trust is private from the moment it’s created until after your passing. This is advantageous for those who do not wish to proclaim sensitive or confidential information to the world. After all, the nature and amount of your assets is not anyone’s concern but your own. And who you name as your heirs is also not anyone else’s concern.  
• When a will is the sole estate planning tool used by an individual, upon their passing their assets over a certain value will be forced to pass through the probate process which requires time, additional fees, and possible tax burdens. If you choose to place assets within a living trust, those assets will not have to go through probate.
• A will enables you to name your choice for a guardian or guardians for your minor aged children in the event you pass away before they reach adulthood, or if you become incapacitated. This is not possible with a living trust. However, our living trust lawyer can create a will for you as well as a trust if you have minor children.

Bequeathing Property to Minors Using a Living Trust

If at the time of your passing you have minor-aged children to whom you wish to bequeath property, by law they cannot inherit it until the age they are considered an adult. Instead, the trustee you name for your living trust will manage the property or properties until such time that the minors reach adulthood. At that time, the living trust will expire (assuming all of the other assets have already been distributed). Alternately, you can instruct your Sacramento estate planning lawyer to specify that the now-minor aged child cannot the property until they have graduated university (post adult age).

Contact Yee Law Group, P.C. for their insight into estate planning and what to know about living trusts.