Estate Planning Insights Scott Aubrey

3 Simple Ways to Avoid Probate Costs - aubreylegal.com

Name a Beneficiary. The probate process only applies to those accounts or other property that are in your name at your death. By naming a beneficiary, these accounts and other property will be transferred to the named individual without any court involvement.

Own Property Jointly. Probate can also be avoided if the property you own is held jointly with a right of survivorship. Similarly to a beneficiary designation, joint ownership has the effect of automatically transferring the ownership upon your death.

Create and Fund a Revocable Trust. Once the Revocable Trust has been created, and you have properly transferred the ownership of your accounts and property to the Revocable Trust by re-titling them into the name of the trust, you remain in charge of all legal decisions until your death as the trustee, and you retain the enjoyment of those accounts and property as the current beneficiary. After your death, your named successor trustee will manage and distribute your assets – according to your wishes. A trust works well if it is properly created and funded by an experienced estate planning attorney.

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Avoiding probate is often the main goal of creating an estate plan. Probate can be expensive, time consuming, and clients don’t want to burden their family with probate. A trust is the best way to avoid probate, but there are other strategies. If you don’t want to create a trust, the two main strategies are utilizing beneficiary designations and transfer on death accounts. In this video, I explain how to avoid proabte without a trust. #AubreyLaw, #EstatePlanning, #EstatePlanningLawyer, #PeaceofMind

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2. You are able to control how and when your beneficiary receives the assets of the trust. This is often referred to as "controlling from the grave." A trust provides you with a lot of flexibility in the distribution of the trust assets.ts.? And normally I give a typical lawyer answer of ... it depends. Whether or not you need a trust depends on a number of factors. One important factor is whether creating a trust accomplish your estate planning goals. If it doesn’t, then you don’t have to create a trust. There might be advantages or benefits, but ultimately, your estate plan should accomplish your goals and you don’t need a trust if it does not fit your goals.

If you’re wondering why you might want to create a revocable trust, then below are 3 reasons:

1. A trust avoids probate. Any asset held in your trust will not go through probate because you transferred owneship from you individually to the trust during your lifetime. A trust is the best way to avoid probate.

2. You are able to control how and when your beneficiary receives the assets of the trust. This is often referred to as "controlling from the grave." A trust provides you with a lot flexibility on the distribution of the trust assets.

3. A trust is private. A trust does not be filed anywhere while you’re living or at your death. So if privacy is a goal, then you should create a trust.

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Probate is another one of those words many have heard and it’s probably something you’re told you want to avoid, but not many people have experienced or truly understand what it entails even if they know what the term means.

Probate is the legal word for the Court process of handling the assets and obligations of a person when they pass away. Assets in a person’s individual name (without having a beneficiary designation) have to go through probate to transfer to the beneficiaries
So – what does probate entail? Probate can be formal (with lots of Court oversight) or informal (with little or no Court oversight). The process for both formal and informal probate begins with an application for administration. Informal is always preferred over formal for the simple fact that there is less cost, less oversight, and a shortened process. That being said, when there is conflict sometimes Court oversight is required to effectively move the process along.

After an application for administration is filed and accepted by the Court, a Personal Representative is appointed. The Personal Representative (other states call this person an executor) is the person who will put in the work to settle the estate: publishing notices; informing creditors; filing an inventory; compiling and liquidating the assets; paying last expenses, outstanding bills, and administrative costs; and filing any needed tax returns.
After the work is complete and an accounting of the process put together, the Personal Representative can distribute the assets according to will. Or, if no estate planning was done, according to the state’s intestacy laws.

I just went over a simplified version of the probate process. A typical probate can last about a year. A contested process can take years. There are also costs associated with probate - Court costs, attorney’s fees, and accountant’s fees on top of the ordinary costs of administration. Finally, probate is a public process, which means creditors are more likely to come forward; beneficiaries are more likely to contest; and strangers are more likely to learn about your business.

It is important to sit down and plan your estate. Deciding not to have a plan, is still a plan. Be mindful of what your actions (or inactions) mean and what the process will entail after you are gone.

Also, you cannot obviously force our loved ones to make their own plans. If you find yourself in a situation where you are facing probate for a friend or family member: Don’t panic. The best thing to do is talk with an experienced Massachusetts probate attorney.
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