Five Things you Must Know to Protect Your Family

1. IF YOU HAVE MINOR CHILDREN, YOU MUST HAVE A WILL TO APPOINT A GUARDIAN. You must have a Will to nominate a guardian for your minor children. If you die without a Will, the courts will designate a guardian for your children.

2. A TRUST CAN ELIMINATE THE COST OF PROBATE. You can eliminate the time and expense of probate by holding your home in a living trust. You can avoid the $13,000 statutory probate fee for a $500,000 home by transferring the home to a trust.

3. A TRUST IS USUALLY BETTER THAN JOINT TENANCY. When a surviving joint tenant dies, the property will be probated, resulting in delay (months if not years) and expense (likely thousands of dollars). Holding property as joint tenants may also increase taxes because only ½ of the property may get the “step-up in basis.” It is usually simple and easy to hold property in a trust and better than holding property as joint tenants.

4. THE WRONG BENEFICIARY DESIGNATION OF AN IRA OR 401K MAY RESULT IN PROBATE ($$$). You will want to properly complete your beneficiary designations since a living trust will generally not control retirement assets. If you name minor children as beneficiary, a probate will be required resulting in expenses that could have been avoided with proper planning.

5. A “CERTIFIED SPECIALIST” HAS ESTATE PLANNING EXPERTISE. Certain attorneys apply and are designated by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization as a “Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law.” In order to become a Certified Specialist, an attorney must have certain experience, knowledge and recommendations from other attorneys. While “Trust Mills” often prepare one-size-fits-all living trusts with “cookie cutter” trust provisions that can result in unnecessary expense, a Certified Specialist generally prepares customized estate plans. Using a Certified Specialist often gives peace of mind; After all, when will know if your trust works? (When it’s too late!) You can visit the Marin County Bar Association website to find a Certified Specialist to help you: http://www.marinbar.org/community/estate-planning-lawyers.shtml

Estate Plan Checklist for Those we Love

• Do we need a living trust so that our estate avoids probate?
• Do we have a Bypass Trust or QTIP trust in our living trust so that estate taxes are minimized and our children are protected?
• Does our living trust or will create a trust for our children if something happens to both of us?
• Do we need a life insurance trust so that our family (not the IRS) receives the proceeds?
• Is the amount and type of life insurance we have adequate for our family’s needs?
• Do we have a buy-sell agreement for our business so our family will not suffer a financial hardship?
• Are all of our assets (house, bank accounts, partnership interests and personal property) in our living trust?
• If we owned any property as “joint tenants”, did we consider changing the ownership to “community property with right of survivorship” as allowed by new legislation?
• Who is the beneficiary of our retirement plans (spouse, a charity or the living trust)?
• Does our estate plan fulfill our charitable goals?
• Have we reviewed our estate plan within the last 2 years?
• Have we put our estate planning documents in a safe place (a safe deposit box or fireproof safe)?