Getting your estate plan in order as early as possible in your adulthood is an important task, but it’s one that can be daunting. Taking the time to carefully consider how you want each component in the plan set can help you to ensure that it accurately reflects your wishes.
One of the tasks you have to handle during the estate planning process is determining who will receive your assets. You can list these and who they should go to in your will. Alternatively, you can opt to handle this matter through an irrevocable trust.
What is an irrevocable trust?
An irrevocable trust is a legal tool that you can use to hold assets until your death. Once you pass away, those assets are distributed according to the instructions you set in the trust. These trusts don’t have to go through the probate process, so your beneficiaries will have privacy about their inheritance.
From the time the trust is established and funded through the final distribution of the trust’s contents, the trustee is in charge of them. You won’t have the ability to change the trust or cancel it unless you have permission from either the court or the beneficiaries.
Since you don’t control the contents of the trust, this trust comes with specific benefits. One of these is that your creditors can’t seize the assets held by the trust to satisfy your debts. There may also be tax benefits, depending on the circumstances.
Creating a comprehensive estate plan is critical for all adults, but it must be handled properly so that they can ensure their beneficiaries receive what they intended. Working with someone who’s familiar with getting all of the components together may help you to learn about your options and determine how to represent your wishes.
