Putting Your House in a Trust
If estate planning in Miami, FL has been on your mind lately, you might have considered putting your house into a trust. There are many different ways in which you can dispose of your property or ensure its easy transfer, and a trust is one of the most popular. Even if you’re young and healthy, it’s smart to start estate planning now—you never know what life has in store, and it’s important to protect your family if something were to incapacitate you.
Here’s a brief overview of what it means to put your house in a trust.
Why should I put my house in a trust?
There are two main reasons you might want to put your home in a trust. First, placing property in a trust will ensure that ownership transfers to your beneficiaries, without a long and expensive probate process. This is especially kind to your survivors, since they’ll be grieving.
The second reason people put their homes in a trust is to protect it if they’re suddenly incapacitated. Not all trusts depend on the grantor’s death—a living trust, for example, allows you to appoint someone to manage your home and other assets if you’re unable to do so yourself. That way, you can rest easy knowing someone you trust is in charge of the assets, and will make the appropriate decisions.
How do I put my house in a trust?
If you want to put your Miami, FL home in a trust, you’ll put it into a living trust. You are the grantor (also known as the settlor), and as long as you’re fully in control of your mental faculties, you’ll also be the trustee. That means you’re free to live in your home, manage it and do anything to it you wish during the course of the trust.
However, if you die or are incapacitated, your successor trustee will take over. You, as the grantor, will choose your successor trustee. It should be someone you trust to either manage the property in a way of which you approve, and who will distribute your assets to the beneficiaries upon your death. For example, if you are married with children, you may wish to make your spouse the successor trustee and your children as the beneficiaries.
To place your home into a living trust, you should contact an experienced estate law attorney. They can help you evaluate your assets and determine how you’d like to allocate your property, whom you’d like to benefit from and oversee the assets and what you wish to happen upon your death. A good estate planning attorney in Miami, FL will help you ensure you’re well taken care of, even if you’re incapacitated, and that the estate distribution proceeds as painlessly as possible.
To learn more about the different kinds of trusts, and which kind is appropriate for your assets, get in touch with Ruben J. Padron, PA today to arrange a consultation. We look forward to assisting you and providing the peace of mind you deserve.
Categorised in: Estate Planning