After you pass away, your assets are going to have to be transferred to your heirs. This often happens through the probate process. If you die with a will, then it will be probated. If you die without one, then intestacy laws will apply during the probate process to determine who gets your money and property.
There may actually be a better way to transfer your assets, though. It’s called the trust administration process. Unfortunately, you can only use this method if you plan in advance and you create a trust during your lifetime. The Edwards Law Firm can help you to do that.
1. Trust administration allows for the speedy transfer of assets
The speed at which assets can transfer is one of the biggest benefits of trust administration. The probate process requires going to court, so you’re acting on the court’s schedule. The legal process involved is also a lot more complicated. As a result, it’s not uncommon for probate to take several months or years to resolve.
During this entire time, your loved ones may be waiting on an inheritance that they need. They may also be left without closure as they wait for your estate to be probated and for everything to be finished up so they can start to deal with their grief and move on.
Trust administration, on the other hand, can happen a lot more quickly than the probate process. The entire process can usually be wrapped up within just a few weeks time so your heirs can get their new assets that you have left for them and they can put the legal proceedings behind them. This is a huge benefit for those you have left behind.
2. You can transfer your wealth more privately
There’s another big advantage of trust administration over probate as a means of transferring wealth. It is a private process. It doesn’t happen in court and it doesn’t become public record like probate proceedings do.
Do you want the entire world to be able to find out what assets you own and how you divided them up among your loved ones? Do your heirs want that, and want everyone to be able to find out exactly how much wealth they inherited? Chances are good that the answers to both of these questions is a definite no.
If you want to be able to preserve your privacy and keep these issues within the family, you are going to need a way to avoid probate. Creating a trust and allowing assets to transfer during the trust administration process helps you to do that.
3. You’ll retain more control over your assets
When you have created a trust, you have more control over how the trust administration process works and when and how your administrator will distribute your property. You can provide more specific instructions than you might be able to do with a will.
You are also less likely to find that anyone can successfully contest your trust and argue that your wishes shouldn’t be granted. That’s because you generally create your trust and transfer assets into it well before you pass away. You can manage the trust assets while you are of sound mind and can name a backup trustee to take over if you become incapacitated or if you pass away.
Since the trust will have been operational and you will have been actively managing it for a long time, it is harder for those who survive you to argue that it is not a true reflection of your wishes. While it is still possible for people to contest it, it’s less likely than a will contest to happen or for those arguing against your wishes to be successful in the court declaring your documents won’t be enforceable.
4. Your heirs can keep more of their inheritance since costs are lower
Finally, the costs associated with trust administration are usually lower than the costs associated with the probate process. Since the proceedings are simpler, legal fees should be smaller so your estate won’t have to pay out as much money. There also won’t be the expenses associated with court filings that need to be paid.
You work hard for the assets that you spend your life acquiring and you want that money and property to go to someone that you love and not to paying expensive fees just to transfer it. If you create a trust and opt for trust administration, the lower costs associated with that process means your heirs will walk away with more.
These are just four of many significant benefits of the trust administration process. There are other perks to trust creation as well. The best way to find out if making a trust is right for you is to contact an experienced estate planning attorney. Edwards Law Firm is here to help. You can reach out to an estate planning lawyer that is Northeast Florida based servicing Jacksonville and the surrounding areas at 904.672.7600 today to schedule a consultation and find out about the services we offer.
Our firm will help you to decide if trust creation is right for you and, if so, will work with you to draft and fund a legally valid trust that protects your assets during your lifetime and transfers them quickly and cost effectively to the heirs that you leave behind.
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