Moran & Associates is a trust and estate law firm in Palm Beach, Florida that can assist you with all your trust and estate planning law needs. Our trust and estate attorneys in Palm Beach, Florida can assist you with establishing a range of trusts.
Different trusts might have diverse benefits and drawbacks, depending on your financial needs and estate planning requirements. Let the trusts and estate lawyers at Moran & Associates in Palm Beach, Florida help you find the right trust for you.
Types of Trusts
A trust is an instrument that allows a person or persons to place assets in trust, namely a Trustee, who is required to administer the trust pursuant to the trust terms and for the benefit of a beneficiary or beneficiaries. There are several benefits to creating a trust. Trusts can be used to protect you and your family from creditors, predators, inability and disability, and to avoid the costs of probate and help alleviate some of the tax consequences a person might otherwise face.
Trusts also allow the grantor or creator of the trust to ensure that assets are distributed over time, if they so desire, with certain restrictions and benchmarks in asset distribution to their beneficiaries, for the beneficiaries protection. What are some types of trusts that can be established for estate planning purposes?
- Revocable Trust. A revocable trust is a trust that a person or persons can create during his or her lifetime. With a revocable trust, property and assets can be removed or placed into the trust during your lifetime. You retain control over the assets in the trust. When you pass away, the assets and property in the trust pass on to your beneficiaries. A revocable trust is one of the more flexible trust options available, and it offers the benefits of allowing your beneficiaries the ability to avoid the probate process, as well as protect beneficiaries from predators, creditors, inability, and disability.
- Irrevocable Trust. An irrevocable trust is a trust that cannot be changed during your lifetime. Because of the permanent nature of an irrevocable trust, these types of trusts often confer the greatest tax benefits, but they also provide the trust creator the least amount of flexibility. When it comes to estate planning, high-asset individuals might choose to create both revocable and irrevocable trusts to protect their assets.
- Charitable Trust. This is a type of trust an individual might set up if he or she wants to ensure that certain assets end up being given to a charity. This allows the creator of the trust greater discretion in how their legacy lives on.
- Special Needs Trusts. Individuals who want to leave assets or property to a disabled family member or individual need to consider how inheriting money or property might impact a person’s ability to access Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid Benefits. With a special needs trust in place, a person can give money to a disabled loved one when they pass away, without the money affecting the disabled individual’s government benefits. However, there are specific rules regarding how these trusts can be administered. Money from the trust can be used to cover certain expenses for your disabled loved one.
These are just some of the types of trusts that may be available to you. Other types of trusts include irrevocable life insurance trusts, credit shelter trusts, pet trusts, and more. If you have questions about what type of trust is best for your needs, the trust and estate law firm of Moran & Associates in Palm Beach, Florida may be able to help you. Reach out to our firm today. We can review your situation, discuss your goals, and help you develop an estate plan that will best protect your assets. Establishing a trust may be able to reduce your tax burden, and may be able to help your beneficiaries avoid probate. These are just some of the benefits of establishing a trust. With the help of Moran & Associates, a trust and estate planning law firm in Palm Beach, Florida, we can assist you with moving forward with your estate plan needs.
Trusts Are Not Just for High-Net-Worth Individuals
While many people might imagine a trust as being only for the wealthy, trusts are not just for high-net-worth individuals and families. If you have young children, for example, you may establish a trust for them in case both you and your spouse pass away unexpectedly. A trust can ensure that your children are supported and properly cared for during their youth and ensure that your children will have access to their inheritance when they are sufficiently mature and able to manage it.
A trust can also help you manage timetables for when your wealth will be distributed. It can be an instrument you can use to plan for the distribution of assets and money from the trust on the timeframe you deem appropriate. This is a provision that could be used if you don’t want your children to receive their entire inheritance all at once, or if you want to divide your inheritance amongst multiple parties. There is no standard way wealth must be distributed from a trust and no single timeframe that must be followed. The Palm Beach, Florida trust lawyer at Moran & Associates: Attorneys at Law can help you create a distribution process that is right for your heirs and situation.
If you do choose to use a trust as an estate planning instrument, you may have many additional questions. Can your trust be managed in a way that can help you minimize your capital gains and income taxes? If you plan to invest trust assets, how will they be invested? If you will appoint a fiduciary, or another company or person to manage the trust, what are your goals and plans for the trust? Who will you appoint to manage the trust and how much will this cost? All of these important questions may need to be addressed if you plan to use a trust as an estate planning instrument. The Palm Beach, Florida trust lawyer at Moran & Associates: Attorneys at Law are here to help you with your estate planning needs and with establishing a trust.
Can a Trust Help Me Avoid Probate in Palm Beach, Florida?
Many trust lawyers claim that a trust can help you avoid probate, the legal process by which a deceased person’s estate is appraised and administered after death. If there is a will, the probate process is a legal process by which a will is validated and by which assets are distributed after a person passes away. If there is no will, the probate process involves the distribution of assets according to intestate laws. While income and assets passed to heirs through a trust won’t need to go through probate, having a trust in place doesn’t mean that your family may be able to avoid probate entirely. You may still require a will for some assets. However, a trust may be one estate planning instrument you might be able to use to minimize tax liability, reduce complexity of the probate process, and have greater control about how your legacy is passed to your heirs. If you have questions about whether a trust is right for you, reach out to the Palm Beach, Florida trust lawyer at Moran & Associates: Attorneys at Law today.
Talk to Moran & Associates About Your Trust Today
The coronavirus pandemic has changed many people’s financial picture and plans. Many individuals and families are taking this time to re-evaluate their financial plans, estate plans, and end-of-life plans. If you haven’t done so yet, now might be a time to speak to a lawyer about planning for the future. Is your estate plan robust enough to weather the storm ahead? Reach out to Moran & Associates, a trust and estate law firm in Palm Beach, Florida today to learn more about your options.
The benefits of establishing a trust is that a trust allows you to name your beneficiaries and make decisions about when the assets in the trust will be distributed to your beneficiaries. This gives you added control of your legacy, and helps you ensure that your beneficiaries don’t overspend the money in the trust too quickly. A trust can also protect your beneficiaries from having to pay probate fees. Have questions about estate planning or your trust? Reach out to Moran & Associates, estate and trust attorneys in Palm Beach, Florida today!
