The One Thing We All Have In Common

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Now, back to the concept of a trust.  If the two of us died in a joint car accident and our home were owned by the trust, it would bypass probate. The reason is that our home, which is indeed owned by our trust, would pass to the successor trustees whom we have named in our trust.  All they would need in terms of documentation is a death certificate and a copy of the trust; at that time, they could sell the house.

Why is this such a big deal? Imagine if there is still a mortgage in place on the home.  The payments would still have to be made each month during probate, which is a minimum of 6 months in the state of Arkansas. We have seen young, adult children have to gather all the personal items and walk away from the home simply because they could not afford to keep up the payments during the time that the house was going through probate. Even if the home is paid for, there would still be taxes and insurance to be maintained.

Some other reasons to consider whether you need a trust:

• Highly appreciated land that has passed from one generation to the next – a common finding in our farming state
• An adult child with a disability or who is a spendthrift
• Children who are minors and would not be able to come into possession of the assets that you want to be used for their benefit

Now, I will say that not everybody needs a trust. Leave it to your estate planning attorney to determine if you need any or all of the following: will, power of attorney, living will, and a trust.

One thing that you do need, regardless of your situation, is open communication with your spouse and your heirs.  Be sure that your loved ones know all the following:

• Passwords to everything – Be sure to keep them updated or use a password program that does this for you. In my opinion, the most important one is the password to your email account. If they have that, they can likely get the rest of them if needed.
• Sources of all your income – like pensions, annuities, etc. They need to know if the income will continue at your passing, at a full or reduced rate, or if it will stop. While Social Security is known for taking back a check, many people don’t realize that the same thing happens with most pensions, depending on what day of the month you pass and when they are notified.
• Information on all insurance policies – Be sure to review your beneficiaries annually and change them as needed.
• All account information – bank accounts, investments, etc. – You know, the way that we used to find out that Grandpa had a $10,000 CD at the bank was that a statement came in the mail a month after he passed away. I am greatly concerned that this generation will see a significant amount of assets LOST simply because they no longer get paper statements, they didn’t tell the kids about the account, and the kids don’t have access to their e-mail. Think about it.  How easy would it be to lose that 401(k)/IRA that you worked to build up for 3 decades? Be sure that your kids know where your money is.

My mom-in-law recently passed away, and my husband and I are the family members responsible for settling everything.  Even with what I do for a living and as prepared as we thought that we were, it has still taken well over 80 hours of work on my part alone to settle things. I cannot begin to imagine what it would be like if we had not been prepared.

Make it easy on your loved ones.  BE PREPARED. By the way, do you know anybody who “died before their time?” Be prepared early.

This information is not intended to be a substitute for individualized legal advice. Please consult your legal advisor regarding your specific situation.