Having an estate plan is vital. It ensures that your property or assets will be easily transferred to your chosen beneficiaries after you become incapacitated. There are numerous disadvantages of not having an estate plan, and they include family feuds, the exorbitant probate process and higher tax burdens for the heirs.
One way of ensuring that your assets and property are allocated to your designated beneficiaries is by creating a trust. A trust is an enforceable legal document used in estate planning. It is usually composed of three parties; a grantor, trustee and beneficiary. The grantor is usually the creator of the trust, and they have legal authority over the property listed in the trust. A trustee is an individual or organization that transfers the property or assets to the third party or the beneficiary as outlined in the trust document. The beneficiary is the party that benefits from the trust.
How can I create a trust in Brooklyn?
Below are a few steps that can help you successfully create a trust:
- The first thing should be to decide which type of trust best suits you. We have different types of trust recognized by the New York laws, and they include; revocable trusts, irrevocable trusts, honorary trusts for pets and charitable trust
- Creating a list of your property and assets can help you decide what to have in the trust. The most common types of assets listed in a trust are real estate, mutual funds, stocks, bonds, family heirlooms and artwork. At this point, you can also gather all the relevant documentation attached to properties, like titles to vehicles or property deeds
- Select your trustee. If you decide to name yourself as the trustee, you will also have to name a successor trustee who will be in control after you become incapacitated
- Make the actual trust document. You can hire an attorney to help you craft the document, or you can do it yourself
- Sign the trust document in front of a notary
- Fund the trust by transferring your listed property to it
Can I terminate a trust after creating it?
Life is so unpredictable, and things might not go well as you had expected. Through this, you might want to terminate or alter the trust. This can only be possible if you had created a revocable trust.
With a revocable trust, you can make changes, alterations or revoke it entirely. If you had created an irrevocable trust, it will be impossible to make any alterations, changes, modifications or termination after its creation.
