Settling for “3” Instead of Going for “7” Wills vs. Trusts

Each game plan is incorporated as a means of constructing a distinct strategic advantage. The same is true for wealth management and asset protection plans. While a Last Will & Testament is an essential component of any winning game plan, it is often necessary to tackle your goals with the incorporation of a Living Trust. Look to the following game plans to determine which supplies the best strategic advantages for your asset protection goals.

Will & Last Testament Game plan: Control of Your Assets

A Will is crucial in any estate plan. This is the document that will be used to determine your intent regarding the distribution of your property. Thus, without it, all of your assets will be distributed according to State statute, which may be a departure from your own personal wishes. Furthermore, if you have any minor children, you can designate a legal guardian, thereby communicating your wishes to the court when the time comes for a guardian to be appointed. As you can see, this is the foundation of your game plan.

Will Coupled with Trust Game Plan: Control & Protection of Your Assets

This game plan combines your testamentary wishes with further protection by having the Will pour-over into a Trust. The will coupled with a trust effectively bypasses probate, which is the validation of the will — a process that is often incredibly time consuming and often expensive. The pour-over will takes all of the property that passes through the will, and funnels it into the trust. Said property is then distributed to the trust beneficiaries pursuant to the terms of the trust. A pour-over will functions to ensure that all of the decedent’s property is transferred to trust. Think of the pour-over will as a safety net that catches all of the assets that were not properly transferred into trust. All the contents of the net are then poured into the trust, ensuring that all of the property is ultimately distributed through the living trust. Furthermore, all of the decedent’s property is distributed by the terms of one document alone (the trust), allowing for simplicity and clarity.

You need a Last Will & Testament in every winning succession game plan; however, combining it with a Living Trust may be one of your most important strategic advantages! It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?

Did you know that Florida has one of the worst Probate systems in our country?  Not only will a percentage of your assets diminish during the process but your loved ones could have to wait well over a year before receiving anything.  This is why it is important to understand the process and plan accordingly.

Probate is the legal process of proving a Will in court.  Unless you own assets jointly (which will pass by operation of law) or have a Will substitute in place (such as a Revocable Living Trust) all of your assets must go through the Probate process.  The type of probate administration that will be required will be determined by the size of your estate.  An estate that is worth less than $75,000 would require a Summary Administration.  This type of administration is less costly to your family but could still take up to a year to complete.  If your estate exceeds $75,000 in assets, then a full probate administration will be necessary.  A full administration could very well last for over a year and can be very costly.  Your family may be faced with extreme financial burden and stress during a time where they should be focused on healing.

Probate offers no real benefit to the family members that are left behind.  Instead, it can cause a great deal of stress which is why you should consider avoiding it all together.  Probate avoidance can be accomplished in a number of ways.  As previously mentioned, any assets that pass by operation of law will not be subjected to probate.  This would include property held as husband and wife, property held as joint owners with the right of survivorship, accounts that are held jointly and so on.  One of the more popular ways to avoid probate is through the creation of a Revocable Living Trust.  All assets held in trust will avoid probate and pass directly to the listed beneficiaries.  A trust has additional benefits too, such as setting limitations on when your beneficiaries will receive their share.  It allows for you to have control from beyond the grave, avoid probate and could save you on estate taxes.

Be proactive and eliminate the possibility of probate from your future.  Call the office of Wild, Felice & Partners today for your free consultation at (954) 944-2855.

For more information on Probate, Estate Planning, and Asset Protection, visit our website at www.wfplaw.com.

It’s A Wild World.  Are You Protected? SM

Estate Planning For The College Student

For parents and students, the commencement of a new school year is much like what January 1st is to everyone else: Looking back on the recent life events and choices, while looking forward to the lofty ideals of what lays ahead – a fresh start to the “new” year. In the inception of the new school year, it is time to consider whether you are sporting an old, and less effective, estate plan. Explore your current status, and determine if you are properly prepared for tomorrow. Estate planning isn’t just for the “old & wise.” In fact, the “young and foolish” can start their ascent into wisdom by taking a look into the future, and being prepared for what is looking back! Clearly, the last thing on a young adult’s mind is designating a personal representative, and deciding whom to give their borderline non-existent fortune to. However, at such a young age, the goals of estate planning are not ripe, they are just different. For example, Junior should be less concerned with who will be inheriting his baseball card collection and Xbox, and more concerned with how his digital assets will be treated (preserved, closed, etc.), or who will be his power of attorney and/or Healthcare Surrogate. Standard college student estate planning goals can be achieved with the following documents. Durable Power of Attorney (DPA): this document is going to designate someone to take care of “business” in the event of incapacitation or death. Any financial decision or situation where the college student’s authority is necessary will require a power of attorney to step in their shoes. Furthermore, it can be useful for convenience alone. Lets just say the college student is studying abroad, and wants her parents to take care of her affair while she is gone. When Junior reaches the age of a legal “adult,” he has to authorize his parents to make decisions for him. Combination Living Will & Designation of Healthcare Surrogate: this is a very important issues for young adults, as many are surprised to hear that their parents may not be able to make health care decisions for them or access their health records. Therefore, the college student will want a living will & designation of healthcare surrogate in place, as well as HIPPA authorization, to ensure that a trusted person or parent(s) can make medical decisions on their behalf. Digital Assets Will: Today’s college student will have a lot of digital assets (social media accounts, banking accounts, school accounts, etc.). Therefore, it is often helpful to have a will in place that directs the proper administration of such accounts and assets. For monetary accounts, you may want to leave specific instructions, including the account information, and how you want the account to be closed or maintained. For sentimental accounts (social networking, photos, blogs, etc.), your main concern will be minimizing the hassle associated with loved one’s accessing your accounts, or having them closed in a manner that will preserve your privacy. Furthermore, the college student may want to consider a basic pour-over will and living trust to avoid the hassle and time associated with probate. A lesson to those who are proceeding down the path of collegiate wisdom – plan ahead!

Most individuals that contemplate estate planning do so because they want to protect their family and provide for their loved ones.  Yet, how does an estate plan differ if your loved one is either physically disabled or has special needs?  Leaving a legacy behind for a disabled family member requires careful planning by a skilled estate planning attorney.  If not done properly an estate plan meant to protect a disabled individual can actually harm them.  These problems can be avoided by creating a Special Needs Trust.

Individuals with disabilities often qualify for government assistance.  They can likely qualify and benefit from Supplemental Security Income, Medicaid and subsidized housing to name a few.  However, leaving your loved one assets or a large sum of money by way of a Last Will and Testament or a Revocable Living Trust can actually cause them to lose these benefits as they would no longer qualify.  By creating a Special Needs Trust that holds the assets for their benefit you then protect their eligibility and secure their future.  A trusted individual or financial institution would act as Trustee and manage the assets on behalf of your disabled loved one.  Since the Trustee controls the money and not your family member the trust assets would be ignored when considering eligibility for governmental assistance.  The end result is your beloved family member enjoying the type of life you envisioned – benefiting from what you’ve left them while still receiving governmental assistance.

Don’t delay on securing your disabled love one’s future.  Call the South Florida Office of Wild, Felice & Partners at (954)944-2855 today for your free consultation.  For more information on Estate Planning, Asset Protection, Probate Administration and Elder Law, please visit our website at www.wfplaw.com.

It’s A Wild World.  Are You Protected? SM

New School Year May Require a New Estate Plan

For parents and students, the commencement of a new school year is much like what January 1st is to everyone else: Looking back on the recent life events and choices, while looking forward to the lofty ideals of what lays ahead – a fresh start to the “new” year. In the inception of the new school year, it is time to consider whether you are sporting an old, and less effective, estate plan. Explore your current status, and determine if you are properly prepared for tomorrow. A lot can happen in a year: children get older, family relationships change, or the size of your estate increases. Let us take a look at possible life events that can warrant a revised estate plan:

Marriage & Divorce: If you have recently married or divorced, it is important to go back through your current estate plan to see whether these life events are addressed in your will or trust documents. First and foremost, marriage does not revoke a will. Divorce, however, may have an effect on the validity of the will. When you fail to amend your will following a divorce, and unless there is a provision within it that states otherwise, the will is treated as if the former spouse died upon divorce (wishful thinking, right?). As an alternative, the divorce or dissolution of marriage judgment can contain such language stating that the provisions in the will regarding the former spouse are valid, notwithstanding the divorce. Therefore, if you no longer want your former spouse to be the beneficiary of any portion of your estate, you need to check the language of your current will. If you get married following the execution of an estate plan, your spouse is entitled to an intestate share (in Florida, this is “per stirpes”) of your estate by statute, unless the new spouse waives the right, or the document itself provides otherwise (intent not to provide for new spouse, or provision providing for spouse in contemplation of marriage). Also, you may have had your former spouse designated as a Power of Attorney, or health-care surrogate. Thus, it is very important to ensure that your estate plan is consistent with your wishes following a divorce or marriage.

Children: if you have a new child following the creation of your estate plan, it is important to ensure that your new bundle of joy is provided for. You may want to set up a trust, a 529-college plan (see “Student Tax Holidays & Savings,” above), alter beneficiary designations in your will, and nominate a legal guardian.

Estate Size Increase: You want to make certain that your estate plans are tailored to your estate size. Therefore, when your estate increases, you may want to make some changes in terms of tax and estate planning. Furthermore, if you have an estate plan that is set up to avoid probate, and acquire new property, you will want to assign that property to your living trust. You may want to consider a variety of estate planning strategies, anywhere from setting up an LLC to protect certain assets from lawsuits, to reducing the size of your estate for tax purposes.