A Commitment

to Each Client.

A trust gives you control over an inheritance

 If you just leave an inheritance to someone in your will, you don’t have any control over how they use it. They won’t get it until you pass away, and then they will take direct ownership. If you give a beneficiary $50,000, they could spend it on anything from a college education to a sports car. You would have no say.

For some people who are making their estate plans, this can give them pause. They have worked hard to save up this money over the decades, and they know that the inheritance can do a lot of good for their beneficiaries. They want to make sure that it’s used on something useful. If you find yourself in this position, you may want to consider using a trust.

The terms of the trust

Instead of giving the money to the beneficiary, you put it into a trust and name them as the beneficiary of that account. You also select a trustee who will make the distributions.

By having a trustee in the middle, you ensure that the money will be used as intended. You can either give the trustee the discretion to make decisions as they see fit, or you can give them specific instructions that they have to follow.

For example, maybe you want to ensure that your beneficiary gets a college education. You could put the money in a trust and say that they can have the full balance, but only after they graduate. Until then, the funds can only be used for college-related costs. This could limit frivolous spending.

Setting up your estate plan

Trusts are just one part of a comprehensive estate plan. Be sure you know exactly what steps you’ll need to take to create it.

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