(717) 232-5000
Your estate refers to the entirety of your assets at the time of your death, and estate planning is your means of ensuring that your wishes regarding your wealth are upheld upon your passing. The probate process is the legal mechanism for resolving matters related to your estate, and trusts are a powerful tool for ensuring that the bulk of your estate bypasses the probate process and flows directly to the beneficiaries you assign.
If you haven’t addressed the matter of your estate planning, now is the right time to do so. If you have questions or concerns about how well your estate planning addresses your unique needs, the same is also true. Contact our experienced attorneys in Lancaster, PA, today.
About Trusts and Your Estate Plans
Trusts provide those who create them with an excellent tool for managing their wealth and protecting their assets during their lifetimes and into the future, on behalf of their loved ones. Pennsylvania offers a range of trusts that serve various specific purposes – some of which may align with your own estate planning needs.
Revocable Living Trusts
Revocable living trusts are, as the name suggests, revocable. This means that the person who creates the trust can maintain control over the assets held in the trust throughout their lifetime. You will, however, need to appoint a successor trustee to assume the administrative duties in the event of your death or incapacity. Trusts enhance privacy regarding the distribution of your estate, and the assets you distribute to your beneficiaries in a revocable living trust can avoid the probate process.
Irrevocable Living Trusts
Irrevocable living trusts, on the other hand, can’t be altered once they have been created – except when all the involved beneficiaries consent to the change or the court orders it. In exchange for placing assets in an irrevocable trust, you benefit in all the following important ways:
- The assets included are afforded considerable protection from creditors and legal judgments
- You help to ensure the privacy of your estate
- The assets include bypassing the probate process
- You shield the assets included from taxation at both the state and federal levels
Within the irrevocable trust category, there are additional trusts that serve specific estate planning needs, including the following:
- Charitable trusts, which allow their creators to support causes that are near and dear to them and to experience tax benefits in the process
- Qualified personal residence trusts, which allow their creators to exclude the value of a residence or vacation home from the overall value of their estate to limit taxation
- Special needs trusts, which are designed to address ongoing financial support of dependents with disabilities, without jeopardizing their eligibility for much-needed government benefits
Consult with an Experienced Estate and Trusts Lawyer Today
Our compassionate estate and trusts attorneys in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, possess the experience and legal expertise to help you establish trusts that instill confidence in your financial legacy. Contact us online or call (717) 232-5000 for more information today.