It’s true that if your child is on your deed as a joint tenant on your home, your home will not have to go through probate if your child survives you. At your death, your surviving child would immediately become the sole owner of your home without probate and with minimal transfer costs.
Legacy and Estate Planning
Trusts are often associated with the rich. However, the uber-wealthy are not the only people who can benefit from using trusts. There is no minimum asset level or net worth required to set up a trust, and you can put any amount of money into a trust.
In estate planning, the use of trusts to manage the distribution of assets is becoming increasingly more common. However, for many people, the idea of setting up a trust during his or her lifetime is overwhelming and perhaps even unnecessary.
As the coronavirus pandemic increased anxiety and upended many lives, it led U.S. millennials to get more serious about end-of-life planning.
Once more hesitant to plan ahead, clients in today’s environment are much more proactive and willing to take action in the near term, rather than waiting and risking having to pay higher taxes down the line.
Many estate executors focus on estate taxes and forget about income taxes. That can be an expensive mistake.
A will is first. In essence, a will spells out who will get your stuff, in what proportions they will get it and in some instances at least, upon what conditions.
A charitable trust allows you to donate assets to a chosen tax-exempt charitable organization or nonprofit and comes with certain tax benefits to help you minimize what you might owe to the government.
Estate planning is not a requirement. No one can force you to make your will, create a power of attorney or to own your property in a way to avoid probate. As a result, people too often let common estate planning excuses stand in their way.
If you do not plan appropriately and thoughtfully, problems may arise with respect to this property and your family when you are gone.