Living Trusts and Wills in Ohio

Revocable Living Trust

A trust is an entity that holds assets during and after your lifetime. A trust is created by you, the grantor, and a trustee is appointed to manage the trust assets according to its terms. With a revocable living trust, the grantor also serves as trustee during his or her lifetime and a successor trustee is named to manage the assets when the grantor passes away or upon incapacity. A revocable living trust is revocable because the grantor has total control over the trust and can change the trust while alive. A revocable living trust can serve as a vehicle to transfer assets at death, similar to a will, but it has many more benefits that will enable you to take further control.

What are some of the benefits of a revocable living trust?

  • a revocable living trust eliminates the need for a costly and time-consuming Probate court proceeding. Everything in a revocable living trust is private and not subject to the public like Probate is.
  • you can control assets after your death through a revocable living trust by creatively structuring distributions of assets for your beneficiaries. For example, you might not want a beneficiary to receive a large sum of money right away all at once or at a young age, and with a revocable living trust you have the ability to stagger distributions over time, at certain ages, or for certain purposes, like education or to assist with purchasing a house.
  • if a beneficiary is a spendthrift and tends to make poor financial decisions or has substance abuse issues, then a revocable living trust gives you the ability to control assets for that beneficiary. For example, you can stipulate that a beneficiary who deals with substance abuse only receives their share upon passing a drug test.
  • a revocable living trust can provide creditor protection for beneficiaries. If you leave assets to a beneficiary outside of a revocable living trust and that beneficiary gets sued, their creditor could potentially attach a claim to those assets. Likewise, if a beneficiary were to get divorced, then the spouse could potentially make a claim to those assets. With a revocable living trust, however, you can control those assets and keep them protected for your beneficiaries.
  • if you have a beneficiary who receives government benefits, a revocable living trust can be set up in such a way to hold the assets so that the beneficiary does not get kicked off their benefits.
  • revocable living trusts can be structured as effective tools for minimizing taxes for married couples and planning for blended families.

Wills in Ohio

A will is an estate planning document that serves as a road map on how to distribute your estate when you pass away. In a will you can gift certain assets outright to beneficiaries, such as a car, jewelry or family heirlooms. You can also establish in a will how the remainder of your estate, such as money or real property, is to be distributed according to your distribution pattern. In a will you also state whom you wish to serve as your executor. The executor is responsible for handling any creditors and administering your estate according to your plan. A family member or close friend is usually chosen to serve as executor. If you pass away with a will as the estate planning tool to distribute your assets, it’s your executor’s duty to submit the will to the Probate court to begin a Probate administration.

An important feature of a will is that parents with minor children can state who they want to be the guardian of their minor children and take care of them in the event they pass away. Guardianship of minor children is something you want to give a lot of thought to, and whomever you choose as guardian for minor children should agree to serve as guardian.

If you pass away without putting a plan in place, then the State of Ohio decides who gets your assets and who is appointed guardian of any minor children, which is why it is so important that you take control and establish an estate plan.

Professional & Experienced Help is Available

Whether a revocable living trust or will is right for you or beneficiaries depends on your specific needs and circumstances. Meeting with an Ohio estate planning attorney will provide you with a legal analysis and help you decide whether a revocable living trust is an effective estate planning tool to help you take control. Call My Ohio Estates to further discuss wills and revocable living trusts.