Estate Planning is an essential component to your overall financial plan. It allows you to gain more control over aspects of your life both during your lifetime and after your death. Our goal is to prepare you for the questions that will be asked by your family as it relates to your estate plan.

Similarities between a will-based plan and a trust-based plan:

Exercising Control: Both a will and a trust allow you to control who gets your assets at your death, how those people/entities get your assets, and who is in charge of making financial decisions at your death. The levels of control do vary with trusts enabling more control.

Amendments: Both wills and revocable trusts are “set in sand”, meaning you can change them provided you have the mental capacity. Both documents are “set in stone” upon your incapacity or your death.

Differences:

Probate Avoidance: A trust will avoid probate if funded properly. A will does NOT avoid probate – it merely tells a probate court where the assets go.

Public v. Private: In most states, probate is costly, time intensive, and most documents are public record. If done properly, trusts will be far easier to administer and can be done privately.

Control during your Lifetime: A trust allows you to control what happens now, if you become incapacitated, and what happens at your death. A will only controls what happens at your death.

Already have an Estate plan in place? Wonderful! We also provide the service for reviewing existing plans and providing recommendations for updates; and the ability to help you with those updates!