Most people recognize the need to have an inheritance plan in place; however, too many fail to recognize when inheritance planning should start. In fact, many people are under the mistaken impression that you must achieve a certain level of material wealth before planning should start. To help clear up some of the common misconceptions about inheritance planning, a Baldwin Hills estate planning attorney explains why inheritance planning is important. What Is Inheritance … [Read more...] about Why Is Inheritance Planning Important?
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Are There Expenses Involved in Administering a Trust?
A living trust is among the most common additions to an estate plan. A living trust can be used to help with a variety of estate planning goals, including probate avoidance, incapacity planning, and asset protection. If you are considering a living trust for your estate plan, you may be concerned about the cost of administering that trust once it is active. A Los Angeles trust attorney at Collins Law Firm explains typical costs involved in administering a trust. Trust Basics A … [Read more...] about Are There Expenses Involved in Administering a Trust?
Is a Will or a Trust Better for Distributing Estate Assets?
For most people, the ability to decide how their estate assets are distributed after they are gone is a primary motivation for creating an estate plan. If that is one o your primary estate planning goals, you will need to decide exactly how you want most of your assets to be distributed – via a Last Will and Testament or a trust agreement. A Los Angeles estate planning attorney at Collins Law Firm offers some factors to consider when deciding whether a Will or a trust should be used to … [Read more...] about Is a Will or a Trust Better for Distributing Estate Assets?
How Is Estate Planning Different If You Have Minor Children?
Every adult can benefit from having a comprehensive estate plan in place. There are some adults, however, for whom estate planning takes on a heightened importance. Parents with minor children, for example, have even more reason than the average person to have a well thought out estate plan in place for several reasons. If you are the parent of a minor child, it is in your best interest, and that of your child, to work closely with an experienced California estate planning attorney to ensure … [Read more...] about How Is Estate Planning Different If You Have Minor Children?
Are Your Assets Protected in Your Estate Plan?
If you already have an estate plan in place, or you are planning to create one soon, a primary motive for that plan is likely to protect and provide for loved ones after you are gone. To accomplish that goal, however, you must protect the assets you have while you are here. To ensure that you assets are safe, you must first recognize the myriad of ways in which they may be at risk. To get you started, the Los Angeles trust lawyers at Collins Law Firm discuss some of the most common threats to … [Read more...] about Are Your Assets Protected in Your Estate Plan?
6 Ways to Protect Your Assets
When you think about estate planning, you likely focus on decisions surrounding the division of your estate assets when you are gone and the desire to provide for loved ones with those assets. Your estate plan, however, should do more than simply create a roadmap for the distribution of your estate assets. It should also include strategies for growing and protecting those assets over the course of your lifetime. In fact, without incorporating asset protection strategies into your estate plan … [Read more...] about 6 Ways to Protect Your Assets
5 Reasons to Use a Living Trust to Distribute Your Estate
One of the primary reasons why most people create an estate plan is to ensure that their estate assets are distributed according to their wishes after they are gone. To achieve that goal, most people initially choose to use a Last Will and Testament. While a Will certainly does allow you to decide how your estate assets are distributed after your death, a Will is a rudimentary estate planning tool that has limited functionality. Consequently, you may wish to consider using a trust as your … [Read more...] about 5 Reasons to Use a Living Trust to Distribute Your Estate
Steps in the Estate Planning Process
For anyone who is new to estate planning, the prospect of creating an estate plan can be an intimidating one. The concepts, language, documents, and even some of the goals are unfamiliar. While every estate plan is unique, the Los Angeles estate planning attorneys at Collins Law Firm offer some common steps in the estate planning process to make the process a little less intimidating. Define your goals. Before you can really get started with your estate plan you need to sit down and … [Read more...] about Steps in the Estate Planning Process
Can I Avoid Probate by Executing a Will?
When you think about the need for an estate plan, you likely focus on the desire to ensure that your estate is distributed according to your wishes after you are gone. While that is certainly a strong motivating factor in the creation of most estate plans, a comprehensive estate plan can accomplish much more. Probate avoidance, for example, is a common secondary goal for many people. Much confusion, however, exists regarding how to structure an estate plan so that an estate avoids probate. The … [Read more...] about Can I Avoid Probate by Executing a Will?
Can an Irrevocable Trust Be Modified?
Given how popular trusts are within an estate plan, there is a very good chance that you will be directly involved with a trust at some point in your life. Trusts are broadly divided into testamentary and living trusts with the latter being further divided into revocable and irrevocable living trusts. If you are faced with the desire to modify or terminate an irrevocable living trust you may assume that it cannot be done; however, that is not entirely true. A Crenshaw trust attorney at Collins … [Read more...] about Can an Irrevocable Trust Be Modified?
