Planning your estate and forming a living trust to ensure the proper division of your assets is something you should certainly consider if you want to safeguard the interests of your family. Estate planning, contrary to popular belief, is not only for the rich and famous. It is also applicable for the less wealthy to effectively manage the estate and divide it without any problems, as per the wishes of the deceased.
Trusts are an efficient way to manage the assets and control it accordingly, the power of which passes to the trustee upon death. Thus, hiring an estate planning attorney Orange County can help your family’s future in a lot of ways.

5 Reasons You Need a Trust Attorney

While making a will and living trusts might seem to be quite similar, they are very different from each other. While a will can be contested, a living trust cannot, thus eliminating competition. The living trust is thus, an efficient way to protect your family from creditors and internal contentions. Thus, the need for a trust attorney Orange County is ever so much.
Want to know what are the reasons for which you should hire such an attorney? Well, listed below are five such reasons to ease your dilemma.

1. For privacy purposes
Creating living trusts and hiring an attorney is a good way of protecting the privacy of your assets and protect your family. Since the contents are not revealed in a probate court, the assets that you include in a living trust are known only by you, your lawyer, the trustee and its beneficiaries. Attorneys help to formulate such trust deeds and keep the contents private.

2. To avoid future problems between your heirs
If you anticipate any future contention between your family members with relation to your assets, then hiring a living trust attorney in Orange County CA will solve such issues. An attorney will help you to formulate the deed in such a way that your family members get what you want them to get, without being able to contest it in a court.

3. Ample controlling power
Living trusts provide a person with the adequate controlling power which allows them to control the habits and activities of the beneficiaries even upon being deceased. An attorney helps you to write such a deed and establishes the legality of the procedure. Like for example, if you wish your daughter to inherit your assets but do not want them to go astray, then you can mandate that they receive the cash/ assets upon graduation.

4. Protection from creditors
In case you borrowed heavily throughout your life and failed to clear all your debts, the creditors will certainly ask to clear their debts upon your death. To protect your family, you need to hire an attorney to dictate the terms of the trust and protect your family from becoming penniless. It will also protect your assets from the creditors upon your death.

5. Save up on probate costs
When creating wills, the cost associated with it is far more compared to when creating a living trust. A living trust attorney in Orange County costs less and can help you transition through the procedure smoothly. Moreover, you can save up on estate tax when creating trusts as well.

Some mistakes to avoid when planning your estate
Now that you have realized the importance of hiring a living trust attorney, it is necessary to embark upon your search for one. Despite hiring an attorney, there are a few mistakes committed by many when making estate plans. This complicates the procedure of inheritance upon their death and makes the process of creating a living trust redundant.

Once you hire an attorney, it is necessary to listen to them when formulating the living trust deed. Listed below are eight common mistakes that are committed by most people when they do not pay attention to the advice of their attorney or do not hire one altogether.

• Not including all your assets
One of the common mistakes committed by most people is that they forget or deliberately don’t include some of their assets in the living trust. Any asset in your name will automatically go through probate upon your death. In order to save your family from losing out on money, it is essential that you include all your assets.

• Failing to update the will
It is essential that you keep updating your will depending upon the changes that occur in your life. Hire a living trust attorney in Orange County CA to keep updating your will and assign those assets to the people you want. If there’s a divorce, birth, new property acquisition, etc. in the family, it is necessary that you update your will periodically.

• Not understanding the value of gifts
One of the major mistakes made by most during estate planning is failing to make gifts to save taxes. As per the Internal Revenue Code, making gifts up to $14,000 a year per spouse is exempted from estate tax. So, you can save up to $28,000 on estate taxes.

• Assigning the management of the estate to the wrong person
When you select someone to be the executor, it is essential that you select someone you trust and who would be able to manage the estate. Problems might arise later if the person is distrustful.
Select someone who can handle the management of the estate objectively. He/she must be responsible enough to manage all affairs related to it and has not invested in it himself/herself.

• Procrastinating in forming the trust
Procrastination is the biggest mistake committed by many. People think that they have ample time to do it later and keep postponing it, despite realizing its importance. In order to reduce all the stress related to estate planning, it is necessary that you contact an estate planning attorney Orange County immediately to get your affairs in order.

• Unable to understand the benefits of federal tax exemption
The advantage of being married is lost especially when it comes to estate taxes. Under Federal laws, each spouse can avail a $675,000 exemption from property taxes. Moreover, if the spouse passes away, instead of losing out on the exemption amount, the portion of the estate will be protected under credit shelter trust.

• Naming your child on the deed of the trust
By putting your name on the deed of the house, you are giving your child a large taxable gift. Gifts more than $14,000 per spouse are taxed as per the Federal laws which is a big mistake if you want to save up on the money. If you really want your child to get the house, you can simply form a trust and list their name as the beneficiary.

• Drafting it on your own
One of the primary mistakes committed by most people is preparing the living forms on their own. While it does save on cost, however, some errors occur which makes the form invalid.

It is necessary to hire an experienced trust attorney Orange County like Michael T Walsh to handle your estate planning. Equipped with the requisite knowledge and a thorough understanding of the procedure, his team would help form the living trust in no time. It’s time to get your affairs in order if you want to protect your family’s future.