Five Types Of Detailed Distributions You Can Make Through A Trust
Trusts play an important role in estate planning, providing tax benefits, and can aid in protecting assets by assuring Medicaid eligibility. Another major, yet often overlooked, benefit is that a trust also allows you to make more detailed distributions among your heirs. Our Tampa trust attorney provides five common examples of how clients and their families can benefit from trusts.
- Managing assets for children and vulnerable adults.
If you have underage children or any vulnerable adults in your life, making sure they are provided for in the event of your death is a top priority. You can set aside property and money for them in your will and make arrangements through the Hillsborough County Probate Court to have a guardian put in place. However, creating a trust remains one of the best ways to manage their assets and ensure they are provided for. A trust allows you to establish their standard of living, provide important service, and generally determine how, when, and to whom distributions are made.
- Avoiding a wasted inheritance.
Unfortunately, many families deal with individual members who struggle with personal problems. They may suffer from a mental health disorder, alcoholism, gambling, or other issues, which impacts their decision-making and ability to make wise decisions, particularly in regards to money. In this situation, you can still provide for them while putting protections in place to prevent a wasted inheritance.
- Marking major life events.
One of the truly special advantages of incorporating a trust into your estate planning is that it can allow you to mark and participate in major life events of your loved ones, even long after your passing. A trust can designate distributions on college graduations, marriages, purchases of first homes, the birth of children, and other important milestones.
- Encouraging certain behaviors.
In addition to marking the achievements of certain family members, a trust can also be used to encourage certain behaviors. You can designate money for anything from getting a degree or starting a business to going to rehab. You can also use a trust to discourage some behaviors, such as withholding funds if the recipient fails to perform certain actions that are otherwise in their best interests. However, there are some limitations on both types of provisions under the Florida Statutes.
- Having a say in how assets are managed.
If you have firm opinions on how money should be spent or managed, a trust allows you to convey your ideas and suggestions to others. This can be done with family and friends, but is also common when creating endowments or giving money and property to non-profits.
Request A Consultation With Our Tampa Trust Attorney
At Strategic Counsel Law Group, L.C., we can answer your questions about trusts, guide you in creating one that achieves your goals, and advise you on other important estate planning documents you need to have in place. To request a consultation with our Tampa trust attorney, call or contact our office online today.
Sources:
hillsclerk.com/court-services/probate-guardianship-and-trust
leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0736/0736ContentsIndex.html
