Wills and Trusts

If you die without a valid will in place in North Carolina, your assets will not pass according to your wishes but instead will pass according to the terms of the State’s laws of intestate succession. When a person dies without a will, it is said that they died “intestate.” Every state has laws in place that dictate what will become of a person’s assets should they pass away without a valid will.

Do you have a charitable cause you hold close to your heart? Are you looking for ways to make a charitable impact most effectively in your estate plan? If so, you may want to learn more about a charitable lead trust, what it can do, and the benefits it can bring to you, your loved ones, and your favorite charities.

Charitable Lead Trusts

A charitable lead trust is an irrevocable trust which makes charitable contributions for a certain period of time. Afterwards, the assets remaining in the trust are eventually transferred to the named beneficiaries of the trust, who are usually family and other loved ones. This is not to be confused with the charitable remainder trust, which serves similar purposes, albeit inversely. You see, with a charitable remainder trust, the trust pays out a stream of income to family members, or other named parties, for a set period of time and then transfers the remainder of the trust assets to a charitable organization.
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Have you ever heard of a living trust? Have you ever considered using a living trust in your estate plan? While an extremely useful estate planning tool, many have not heard of a living trust or, may have heard of it, but have never considered adding to their estate plan. That is mainly because trusts remain mysterious to most. Many view it is something that wealthy individuals establish for things like tax purposes. The truth is, however, that trusts can be useful to everyone. To give you a clearer picture of what a living trust is, we will discuss the pros and cons of living trusts here.
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Did you know that you are able to fund a trust with a variety of different asset types? It’s true! You can use cash to fund a trust. You can use securities to fund a trust. Life insurance proceeds can also be held in trust as can real property. In fact, pretty much any type of asset can be used to fund a trust. If you have out of state property, however, you may still be wondering whether you can fund your trust with it.
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The idea of establishing a trust may be intimidating for some people. Trusts have developed a reputation as only being for the wealthy. The truth is, however, that many people could benefit from establishing a trust as part of their estate plans.

In a family and among loved ones, there can be a range of concerns and issues. Perhaps you have a grandchild who is not good with money. Maybe you have a sibling struggling with an addiction. While we all have our concerns and struggles, you may still want to provide your loved one with an inheritance, but worry about where the proceeds will go to. Will the inheritance be immediately wasted away? Will creditors eat up all of it? Will it go towards perpetuating an addiction? Fortunately, a spendthrift trust may solve the dilemma you face.
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There are so many different kinds of people in our lives that we care about and want to provide for. Do you have a loved one with whom you want to provide financial support, but worry about where this support will end up? From creditor issues to poor money management skills, it can be stressful to go back and forth on whether or not you want to risk giving assets to someone who may so easily lose everything. Here, we discuss the spendthrift trust, the possible solution to this problem you may have been grappling with.
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Trusts are often the less recognized and discussed aspect of estate planning. This is unfortunate because trusts can accomplish many things when properly utilized and implemented. A trust can help you avoid the costs and delays of probate.
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A Last Will and Testament, simply referred to as a “will,” is probably one of the most notable estate planning tools. Most people know the basics of a will and think of it only in terms as a way to tell everyone else who you want your property to go to after you die. While a prominent part of the will, there is so much more that can be accomplished by a will and people should know about this as they consider the importance of estate planning.
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During the estate planning process, the benefits, as well as the importance of various legal tools, are discussed. The potential advantages of having different types of Read more . . .

While trusts may be often discussed as being included in an estate plan, the tax consequences of a trust are not always addressed. This is unfortunate because trusts can have significant tax implications for both grantors and beneficiaries. Here, we will address how irrevocable trusts are taxed.
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