“Once you have real adult responsibilities (spouse, children, property, investments, life insurance) and wishes for a future that you may not be a part of, you should start a trust. A trust can stipulate exactly how much and when money and assets can be distributed,” says John Mihaly, author of the article “Estate Planning? Consider a Trust Instead of a Will” on Fatherly.com.Trusts, just like Estate Plans, are often connotated with being instruments used only by the wealthy. However, this is as far from the truth as possible. Mr. Mihaly is indeed correct – any assets you may have that you want to plan for beyond your life are best kept safe within a trust. This will not only protect your money, but ensure it is not mismanaged and wasted on avoidable fees.
Our attorney, Mr. Anthony Danna, Esq. was interviewed for this article, and also lent some valuable tidbits of advice.
“In simple terms, a trust is a fictitious person in the form of a legal document that takes care of your final wishes,” says Anthony Danna, Esq., an Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney licensed in New York, New Jersey, and Florida. “A trust allows you to formalize what you want to happen to your assets, who receives them, and how they are to receive them.”
A trust is also more private, and although it may seem more costly to create at first, it actually ensures that once the creator of the trust passes away, the document does not have to go through Probate Court, which can easily take 6 months. Mr. Mihaly mentions that going through Probate Court to legitimize a will and make distributions incurs a massive amount of fees, in addition to taking additional time.
“Any attorney can try to fit you into a templated trust. A knowledgeable attorney, after taking the time to learn about you and your goals, is going to be able to design a specific trust to achieve those goals,” Danna says. “What you want to happen will happen because this document will do it.”
Danna & Associates, PC has specialized in Estate Planning and Elder Law since 1994. Over 2 decades of experience has given our firm the knowledge and experience to create documents molded for your needs, that carry out your exact wishes. Call 718.273.0300 for your free consultation today!
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