Home Add to Favorite Contact Submit  
             28 March, 2024
 

    
Category:  Articles » Finances » Estate-Plan-Trusts

 

Joint Tenancy, a Will or a Trust? What's the Best Way to Plan Your Estate?

Popularity:
         Views: 2097
2006-10-08 21:57:46     
Article by William K. Hayes

estate plan for you if you don’t have your own,” is preferable to creating your own estate plan.

The problem is that newspapers, magazines, and other media often present conflicting views on whether it is best to choose joint tenancy, a will or a trust as your estate planning vehicle. Who’s telling the truth?

Let’s take a look at the three fundamental goals of an effective estate plan:

(1) Transferring your property to those you designate in a timely and efficient fashion,

(2) Providing for management of your property if you are physically or mentally unable to do so yourself, and

(3) Minimizing the amount of estate taxes imposed by the government as your property passes to succeeding generations.

Now that you know what an estate plan is supposed to accomplish, you can see how the “Big Three” estate planning vehicles stack up. Joint Tenancy is frequently thought of as a “poor man’s will” because the asset transfers automatically upon death to the people named on the title.

What this technique offers in convenience it loses in protection. Consider the case of Dorothy Schmit vs. the Internal Revenue Service. Mrs. Schmit put her husband, who happened to be delinquent in his taxes, on “her” property as a joint tenant for convenience. Mrs. Schmit had to sue all the way to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, an expensive proposition, to get the IRS to finally accept the “nominal” status of her husband.

Both wills and living trusts are more sophisticated ways of transferring property to your heirs. The primary difference between wills and trusts is that wills require a probate administration that can add time and costs to the disposition of your estate. This is true even in the “simplified probate” procedures available in many states. At the margin, avoiding the additional costs and publicity of probate by the use of a living trust is preferable.

Joint Tenancy, a Will or a Trust? Page 2 of 2

If the issue of property management during a property owner’s incapacity arises, both a properly prepared will or trust-based estate plan will have a durable power of attorney which enables someone you have chosen to manage your property. However, a living trust offers additional “substitute management” in the person of a successor trustee for assets in a living trust. Handling property management with a living trust can be of great help because many financial institutions and insurance companies are hesitant to accept durable powers of attorney, but are comfortable with successor trustee management.

In summary, the living trust’s avoidance of probate and the protection of the successor trustee in the case of incapacity are strong reasons to consider a trust-based estate plan.

In deciding which estate planning strategy will work best for you, the best course of action is to seek the assistance of an attorney whose practice is focused on estate planning. Members of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys are required to meet greater educational requirements than most attorneys and must also receive continuing education on the latest changes in laws that affect estate planning, allowing them to provide the highest quality service.

Print article      Bookmark this page
Related Articles 
A Proactive Approach To An Exit Strategy Is The Only Approach To A Successful Exit Strategy (Popularity: ): For the past fifteen years, I have served as a principal, a manager, a transactional advisor, a legal advisor and a financial advisor to privately held businesses and their owners. Over this time period, I have noticed a lack of consistency in how Exit Strategy services are delivered to business owners. This inconsistency exists, even though succeeding a business is one of the most important and complex financial decisions that ...
Asset Protection In Relation To Medicaid And Bankruptcy (Popularity: ): Asset Protection And MedicaidAdvocating the proper asset protection measure is of crucial importance. The asset protection from Medicaid is to be especially mentioned in this regard. The Medicaid is the health insurance system run by the state for people with low income and limited assets. Planning ahead can offer asset protection from Medicaid to a great extent.The asset protection from Medicaid planning option will depend on whether the basic documents ...
Some Simple Strategies For Protecting Your Assets (Popularity: ): As elementary as it may sound, no matter how much money you make, you still need to find ways to hold onto it. There are many small steps to take that will add up to big savings in the end. If you value the assets you have accumulated, or if you feel you should be accumulating more, take this advice and make some minor changes.Firstly, take a look at your ...
Anguilla as a Offshore Jurisdiction (Popularity: ): Anguilla is another jurisdiction with misleading bank secrecy. Commercial confidentiality is contained in the statues, BUT the government of Anguilla will co-operate fully with law enforcement agencies and regulators in other jurisdictions, think wholesale fishing expeditions and inquiries related to “possible” income tax violations. In other words records may be requested just to see if in fact there were any taxation violations that citizens of a certain country may have ...
Offshore Bank Accounts Pros, Cons, Interest Benefits (Popularity: ): Opening an offshore bank account is a matter which should be discussed in detail with a financial advisor such as Estate Street Partners and possibly a lawyer, depending on your individual circumstances and reasons for wanting the account. There has been negative press involving owners of offshore accounts who abuse the bank services to launder money or commit other forms of fraud (tax evasion, hiding money for divorce purposes, etc).CONS ...


Related Business 
Fairfax Estate Planning Attorney (Popularity: ): An estate plan is something that every adult should have but that most people put off for one reason or another. Many individuals believe that only people with a lot of money or assets need an estate plan, but that’s far from the truth. Your estate planning documents can make essential decisions about guardianship for your minor children, medical treatment in the event of incapacity, and your end-of-life wishes. We ...
End Of Tenancy (Popularity: ): End Of Tenancy is making it easy to find end of tenancy cleaning services as well as other tenancy related services and helpful information & tips. Moving every now and then is good for you. It gives you exiting possibilities, sets new goals and might even make some of your dreams come true – after all, people usually move on as they strive to something better.
The Estate Planning Law Firm (Popularity: ): At The Estate Planning Law Firm, PLLC, we believe that everyone should have an estate plan. Our team is committed to providing economical and comprehensive estate planning solutions for all individuals, regardless of life stage or net worth. Our primary objective is to offer the opportunity for everyone to have an estate plan and to make it accessible to all individuals. Everyone with any assets should do some basic estate ...
Fantastic End Of Tenancy Cleaners In London (Popularity: ): The process of cleaning is an important part of every daily routine and that’s why you should be careful when choosing a company to do the job. When it comes to end of tenancy cleaning in London, the efficiency and perfect results come first. This is the time to consider hiring one of professional teams of Fantastic Tenancy Cleaning. We have the best equipment and provide the best tenancy cleaners ...
End of Tenancy Cleaners London (Popularity: ): In order to make your move-in or move-out experience as pleasant as possible, End of Tenancy Cleaning London offers fully guaranteed professional end of tenancy cleaning services. We strive to satisfy tenants and landlords alike by providing the best end of tenancy cleaning service in the business, culminating in a stress-free termination of your lease or rental agreement and a full refund of your bond.
First Cleaning - Cleaning Service In The UK (Popularity: ): First Cleaning is the most reliable domestic and commercial cleaning agency in the business. There is no such thing as a task too big or a task too small for our professional seasoned workers. First Cleaning specialise in the end of tenancy cleaning, end of tenancy office cleaning, end of tenancy house cleaners. We became well established cleaning company market providing post tenancy cleaning service.
Tenancy Clean Ltd. (Popularity: ): End of tenancy cleaning must be applied professionally because your deposit depends on it. That's why you have to hire reliable cleaning company for this job to ensure that you will get your money back. Tenancy Clean is a well known company with lots of satisfied customers so do not hesitate to give them a call and book for a service.
Trust Planning, Setting Up a Trust Account (Popularity: ): Learn estate planning basics, how to protect your assets, trust planning tips, and how to avoid probate from the lawyers who cater to the super rich. Setting up a trust requires a shift in thinking. You need to have the trust documents all signed, sealed and delivered.
Law Offices of Jimmie L. Joe (Popularity: ): Attorney concentrating in estate planning, trust and probate administration, estate and trust litigation, asset protection, conservatorships and guardianships. Located in Diamond Bar.
Living Trusts & Wills (Popularity: ): Living trust and wills provides phone consultation with licensed attorneys to aid families in the estate planning process. Our mission is simple: Provide an estate plan for a price that everyone can afford! With many American families struggling, we came up a with a simple, affordable solution to protect families.